BAHRAIN is a step away from signing the Convention on the Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic.
The Shura Council is set to vote on the urgently government-drafted convention during its weekly session on Sunday.
The Transportation and Telecommunications Ministry said that it was a vital convention that would give Bahrain access to information on ships and vessels before arriving at port.
The convention has also been recommended for a go-ahead by the Health, Interior, Foreign, and Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture ministries.
Several Arab countries led by Saudi Arabia have already joined the convention.
Minister Mohammed Al Kaabi told Shura’s foreign affairs, defence and national security committee that the agreement wasn’t related to maritime mobility and ships and vessels wouldn’t engage in any industrial or commercial activity unless licensed.
“Anyway, we are working with the Economic Development Board and the Industry and Commerce Ministry to get more investment plots available for projects and are also working to encourage the logistics sector,” he said.
“There is a huge increase in maritime activity and this agreement helps us to get information beforehand saving us time and ensuring there are no delays.”
The legislation has been approved unanimously by MPs.
Meanwhile, Shura members will also be notified about a written response from Works Minister Ibrahim Al Hawaj to a question tabled by Shura Council member Dr Bassam Al Binmohammed on plans to tackle traffic snarl-ups.
Measures to tackle traffic congestion in Bahrain include major road expansions and new highways, tunnels and smart traffic light systems as part of 48 projects currently on the drawing board and underway, said Mr Al Hawaj.
He added that a strategic blueprint had been drawn up that would take between two to five years per project to fully implement as infrastructure remains a major component for the country’s sustainable development.
“There are also four urgent roadwork packages that include 48 projects,” he revealed. Twelve will feature in the first phase, 15 in the second, 10 in the third and 11 in the fourth, with each project taking between two to five years to complete.
Strategic roadworks have their own allocated budgets but other improvements come from central funds with BD33.7 million allocated last year, compared to BD14.9m in 2022, said Mr Al Hawaj.
“This compares to BD16m in 2021, BD25m in 2020, BD6.7m in 2019 and BD20m in 2018,” he added.
With millions of dinars already invested, the work continues to reduce journey times and tackle bottlenecks, he promised.
Members will be also notified about two foreign participations held virtually in February on children’s rights and artificial intelligence.
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