Emphasizing the importance of representing the Kingdom of Bahrain in key international events, a number of strategic partners from the Kingdom’s startup ecosystem will join the Labour Fund (Tamkeen) in the Bahrain Pavilion in the upcoming GITEX Exhibition 2022. The exhibition is set to launch on Monday, 10 October at the Dubai World Trade Centre and will run for five days until 14 October. Tamkeen is sponsoring the Bahrain Pavilion with the participation of 30 Bahraini SMEs and startups from the information technology and telecommunication (ICT) sector. Bahrain’s participation is being organized in collaboration with Bahrain Technology Companies Society (BTECH).

The Bahraini delegation will comprise of representatives from Tamkeen, the Information and eGovernment Authority, the Bahrain Economic Development Board, the Bahrain Development Bank, and Hope Fund. This participation highlights the Kingdom’s commitment to supporting the local startup ecosystem across all economic sectors, especially the ICT sector which actively contributes to driving economic growth by creating job opportunities for local talent. This participation will also provide opportunities to attract international investments by meeting with global technology companies and exchanging knowledge and expertise.

On this occasion, Ms. Maha Mofeez, Acting Chief Executive of the Labour Fund (Tamkeen) emphasized Tamkeen’s commitment to maintaining ongoing collaboration with the relevant government organizations that represent Team Bahrain in alignment with national priorities to fulfill the objectives of the economic recovery plan, thus driving greater impact for the national economy. She stated: “It is a priority for us to represent the Kingdom of Bahrain in prestigious international events such as the annual GITEX Exhibition which attracts some of the biggest ICT companies from across the globe. By sponsoring the Bahrain Pavilion, we will support startups and SMEs from the local ICT sector and enable them to enhance their performance and explore opportunities for growth and expansion, allowing them to promote their services and compete in regional and international markets.”

She added: “The Bahrain Pavilion will also host the Bahrain delegation that will represent the Kingdom during the event and share Bahrain’s experience in developing and supporting its ICT sector, as well as network with international experts in ICT and bring back a wealth of knowledge that can benefit the development and growth of this high potential sector in Bahrain”

For his part, Information & eGovernment Authority (iGA) Chief Executive, Mr. Mohammed Ali Al Qaed hailed Tamkeen’s support for the Bahrain Pavilion in the GITEX 2022 Exhibition, and the role of the Bahrain Technology Companies Society (BTECH) in facilitating this participation. He emphasized that the iGA’s participation is in line with their commitment to achieve the leadership vision and implement the initiatives of the Government Action Plan which aim to enhance the Kingdom of Bahrain’s participation in international events and strengthen ties with relevant entities across various sectors. Furthermore, Mr. Al Qaed expressed his pride in iGA’s participation in this global tech event which presents opportunities for the Kingdom of Bahrain to showcase its most recent initiatives in digital transformation, while also providing a platform for the iGA to present its experience in digitalization, providing digital services and electronic solutions as well as utilizing the latest technological advancements, and how it all contributes to driving economic development in the Kingdom.

Commenting on this, Musab Abdullah, Executive Director – Investment Development (ICT) at the Bahrain Economic Development Board said: “The ICT sector continues to be at the forefront of the government’s focus in line with the Economic Recovery Plan, and we are excited to take part in the coming edition of GITEX. The event embodies the ideal opportunity for us to meet with key players from the sector to showcase Bahrain’s competitive advantages from our skilled national workforce, state-of-the-art digital infrastructure, and our forward-thinking business environment.”

From her end, Ms. Dalal Al Qais, Group Chief Executive Officer at Bahrain Development Bank (BDB), added: “The participation of the Kingdom of Bahrain at GITEX this year is of particular importance as it comes after a period of suspension for such specialized international exhibitions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. The exhibition offers a good opportunity to see the latest products and advanced technological projects from around the world.” Al Qais also confirmed that the BDB’s participation in the delegation of the Kingdom of Bahrain will focus on presenting Tijara, a digital platform powered by BDB that offers smart, efficient, fast and convenient banking solutions for SMEs, which the bank will launch before the end of this year as part of the bank’s digital transformation journey. This participation also reflects the spirit of partnership and collaboration between all the participating parties in the delegation and working in an integrated manner to present the experiences and success stories of SMEs in the Kingdom of Bahrain in the information and communications technology sector, the exhibition also offers a great opportunity to discuss joint investments between Bahraini entrepreneurs and their global counterparts. As well as strengthening the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Kingdom through the participation of the entities supporting the entrepreneurship sector in this unique platform that GITEX offers.

Commenting on their participation, Ms. Fajer Al Pachachi, General Manager of Hope Ventures stated: “We are excited to partner with Tamkeen to participate in GITEX 2022 as part of the Bahrain Pavilion to showcase our experience in supporting entrepreneurship in the Kingdom. Hope has launched Beban TV Show, Bahrain’s first entrepreneurial show that allows entrepreneurs to pitch to regional investors for business and investment opportunities. Having expanded the show to UAE, GITEX provides a platform to attract regional businesses to participate in the next season of Beban for the chance to receive strategic business opportunities and equity investment.”

Bahraini SMEs and Startups will be participating in the exhibition alongside 1,400 international companies which will present the latest developments in topics such as the metaverse, web 3.0, blockchain, video games, cloud computing, FinTech and other tech topics. The exhibition is expected to attract over 100K visitors from across the world.

GITEX 2022 will also host a number of events and talks that will facilitate knowledge-sharing and allow the participants to gain knowledge and expertise they can benefit from to develop their own businesses. The Bahrain Pavilion will host a panel discussion that will showcase the Kingdom’s experience in FinTech and the impact of adopting digital solutions on both the public and private sectors.