His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, has ordered urgent measures to combat the effects of international inflation on the most needy in the country.
HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister stepped in to offer the helping hand to low-income families as he chaired the weekly Cabinet meeting at Gudaibiya Palace yesterday.
The urgent measures are:
1- Doubling monthly anti-inflation allowance payments for this month.
2- Suspending fees taken on food warehouses for three months.
3- Stores no longer have to seek permission and pay a fee for staging special sales and promotional events for three months.
4- Reforming the price control committee.
HRH Prince Salman also directed ministries and government bodies to come up with urgent plans and procedures to stabilise commodity prices and their availability in line with the international impact and its effect on the market.
The measures come after activists this week called for steps to check price rises and strengthening consumer protection, as reported by the GDN.
They had urged authorities to make it mandatory for traders to seek government permission before raising prices, in line with moves in neighbouring countries.
HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister directed the authorities concerned and the Social Development Ministry to disburse an additional month of financial support for low-income families to account for global inflation.
The Cabinet went on to commend the outcomes of the fifth session of the Bahrain-Jordan Joint Higher Committee meeting, which was co-chaired by HRH Prince Salman and Jordan’s Prime Minister and Defence Minister Dr Bisher Al Khasawneh.
The session highlighted that the agreements signed during the meeting will contribute to enhancing partnerships across trade and commerce, labour and vocational training, healthcare, youth, education, information, and sea and air freight services.
The Cabinet declared Thursday, February 2, a half workday at ministries and state departments, to mark National Sports Day, which will be dedicated to emphasising the importance of sports and to allow staff to engage in sports events.
On the occasion of Diplomatic Day, which is observed annually in Bahrain on January 14, the Cabinet commended Bahrain’s achievements in the field.
The Cabinet also congratulated the ministries of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments, Health and Education for winning the Arab Government Excellence Awards.
The Cabinet commended the achievements of the ministries and government agencies, for winning awards for excellence in government work at local, regional and international levels.
The session reviewed a memorandum submitted by the Government Executive Committee on the implementation of the Government Priorities Framework 3.1.
The Cabinet directed the ministries, each in its respective capacity, to develop the implementation plan for the remaining 16 projects within the GPF 3.1, aimed at achieving financial sustainability and securing a supportive environment for development.
The Cabinet also reviewed the progress of a number of development initiatives for electricity and water services, including measures that have been taken to address waterlogging in certain areas due to the recent heavy rainfall. In this regard, the Cabinet commended the efforts made by the authorities concerned.
&uuid=(email))