The Kingdom of Bahrain’s delegation to GITEX 2022 officially kicked off their participation in the exhibition on Monday, 10 October 2022 in Dubai. The Labour Fund (Tamkeen) sponsored the Bahrain Pavilion and supported the participation of 30 Bahraini SMEs and Startups from the information technology and telecommunications (ICT) sector. The delegation includes a number of partners from Bahrain’s ecosystem such as the Information and eGovernment Authority, the Economic Development Board, Bahrain Development Bank and Hope Fund. Bahrain’s participation is being organized in collaboration with Bahrain Technology Companies Society (BTECH).

The week kicked off with the signing of an agreement by Bahraini startup VirtuThinko W.L.L. agreement on their first day participating in GITEX with the Boston-based American company HYCU, which specializes in cloud data protection with the purpose of providing their services in the region.

Additionally, the Bahraini digital transformation solutions provider exhibiting in the Bahrain Pavilion, Atyaf eSolutions announced a partnership with Codebase Technologies, a world-leading provider of Open API Banking solutions to create an innovative and first-of-its-kind 3-in-1 marketplace enablement platform, Dinarii.

The Kingdom of Bahrain’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, His Excellency, Shaikh Khalid bin Abdullah bin Ali Al Khalifa, visited the Bahrain Pavilion and its exhibitors as part of the Pavilion’s opening, where he was received by the Acting Chief Executive of the Labour Fund (Tamkeen) Ms. Maha Mofeez, members of the delegation, and participating Bahraini SMEs who showcased their innovative products and services.

On this occasion, His Excellency, Shaikh Khalid bin Abdullah bin Ali Al Khalifa, expressed his appreciation for Bahrain’s unique presence in GITEX and the innovative concepts presented by Bahraini entrepreneurs from the Kingdom’s ICT sector with technology that matches leading global trends and advancements. His Excellency also praised Tamkeen’s role in providing the support required for Bahrain’s participation in the exhibition, alongside their quality support programs that are designed to empower the private sector, upskill the national workforce, and enhance the competitiveness of Bahraini talent in the labor market.

His Excellency stated: “we are proud of the strong Bahraini presence in GITEX, and we are committed to supporting it year on year. We look forward to Bahraini companies reaping the benefits of their participation in this global tech event through building international partnerships, establishing strong commercial ties with decision makers in leading global companies, gaining access to regional and international opportunities, and developing concepts that can cater to different markets”

For her part, Ms. Maha Mofeez, Acting Chief Executive of the Labour Fund “Tamkeen” emphasized that Tamkeen’s ongoing support for Bahrain’s participation at GITEX is in line with the organization’s commitment to supporting private sector enterprises and enabling them to explore opportunities for growth and expansion, and to promoting their products and services to regional and international markets, which contributes to creating more quality job opportunities for Bahrainis, developing the economy, and diversifying revenue streams.

She added: “through this participation we aim to provide Bahraini entrepreneurs and enterprises with opportunities to connect with potential clients, forge partnerships, learn the challenges and opportunities available through digital transformation, showcase their latest products and service to exhibition visitors, and make business deals that can enhance the exchange of knowledge of exhibition participants from across the world.”

According to a statement by the Dubai World Trade Centre, GITEX will host over 250 participants from government organizations that are leading strategic digital projects and fostering partnerships between the private and public sectors. Furthermore, there will be over 1,000 startups seeking fruitful opportunities in the North Star Dubai event, while GITEX 3.0 will bring companies and the sector’s most influential leaders together under one roof to drive change and development in business, community, culture through an immersive Metaverse journey.

Exhibitors will showcase the latest in relation to the metaverse, Artificial Intelligence, Web 3.0, Blockchain, 6G network, cloud computing, FinTech, big data and more.

This year’s GITEX is launching with an unprecedented capacity that exceeds the previous versions in size. The exhibition will span 26 halls with a total space of 2 million square feet, an equivalent of 33 football fields. The event will host 5,000 companies from across the globe and is expecting 100K visitors from 170 countries.