Gulf Daily News, Bahrain

FTA panel probes setting up of joint business board

By Rebecca Torr

4 March 2006

MANAMA: A Bahrain-US joint business board may be set up to speed up the implementation of Free Trade Agreement (FTA).The Bahrain FTA Implementation Committee yesterday discussed a proposal aimed at accelerating the implementation of the pact, the first signed between Washington and a Gulf state.

The committee members agreed on establishing points of contacts with the key relative organisations, including the commercial section of the US embassy in Bahrain.

They also agreed to station a permanent Economic Development Board (EDB) staff at the Bahrain Investors Centre to be a point of contact for investors.

The committee has set the first half of March as the time for its delegation visit to Jordan and Singapore to examine these countries’ experiences after signing the FTA with the US.

The visit will be made by committee representatives from the EDB and Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the delegation will meet public and private sector organisations in both countries.

At the meeting, held at the EDB in Seef District, each of the three task forces presented their preliminary plans and strategies, for marketing and promotion, private sector development and business environment preparedness.

The committee discussed these plans and agreed to consolidate them into one main business plan which would show the responsibilities and target dates for each initiative.

Bahrain’s Ambassador to the United States Dr Nasser Al Balooshi, who attended the meeting, presented and discussed the efforts of the economic representative office in Washington DC since the start of the negotiations until their successful conclusion.

The ambassador has also suggested that the proposed joint business board between the two states should group big companies and banks to empower the board and greatly push for a speedy implementation of the FTA.

The committee will hold its next meeting at the end of the month, at which time the main business plan will be presented and discussed.