Why Bahrain is Different?

Seriously, Bahrain is different in every sense of the word! Ask any expat, ask any local and ask any visitor! Bahrain is a country like no other in the world....

Bahrain is back to normal, and while i got a bit busy with business as usual... the blog has remained a constant nagging to-do in my head.... Because I really need people to know!

While many businesses have suffered, due to the disruption in the past few months.... guess what? The Government of Bahrain cares about the small businesses more than any country in the world! Compare BAHRAIN'S government actions to actions of supposedly 'first world' governments and tell me if anyone has done this:

Enterprise Support Fund

The government through the Tamkeen program is giving out distress GRANTS! Let me make it more clear if its not clear enough.... NOT a loan... a GRANT ranging between $9,000 to $26,500 for distressed companies that are having problems paying utility bills, salaries and other fixed costs!! Or companies that have had to increase their debt to sustain their regular business activity...

GRANTS between $9,000 to $26,000.... hmmmmm, would my own parents give me this kind of money to get me out of trouble?? Because I didnt manage my cashflows properly or because I didnt access the market?

For those that might say that this is 'my right' as a citizen... NO! NO! NO! This is not your right... There is no constitution in the WORLD that says that the government should bail you out as a small-medium size business that has no impact on the economy as a whole... At the end of the day, you are not a bank that will cause a collapse in the financial system, nor are you a huge industrial backbone of the country! You are a SME that owns a coffee shop, or restaurant or a tailor or maybe even a local grocery... Whatever your business is, to the WORLD you dont matter... BUT to the government of BAHRAIN you do! Thats why we are different....

Empowerment!

Tamkeen is the Arabic word for empowerment. Empowerment of the Bahraini citizens.

“Tamkeen underpins the Economic Vision 2030 as a promise to empower individuals, businesses and the nation at large.” My blog will have more than one piece on the Tamkeen schemes. The more the merrier?

Bahraini's as employees of choice

If you live in bahrain you would know that every business owner complains about one thing... I don't want to hire a Bahraini cuz I get more out of the expat. Basically, it's true and honestly I don't blame them. However, what is the problem here? Generalization! The thought that, "oh let the government deal with the unemployment problem, it's not my problem" is a selfish act. The government is overburdened and cannot employ all Bahraini's in the public sector. Ya short working hours and not much commitment to work, yohoooo it's a wonderful world! STOP!

The wellbeing of this country and it's citizens is a national cause. If we do not look at our fellow brothers and sisters then we cease to be human. So! The government thought, ok since not a lot of people are doing this, let's hold their hands and walk them up that ladder and whenever their is an obstacle, we shall carry thee on our shoulders.

Tamkeens programs for individuals range from employment schemes, to training programs to enhancing work ethics. While I am not an expert in Tamkeen's programmes, I have personally seen some of their programs in action, and even with that, some basic internet research has revealed to me some things I didn't even know existed. My list here is not the full set of programs just a brief glimpse of some examples.

Unemployed University Graduates:

The hardest part of graduating from university is finding a job. If you were some of the unlucky ones that graduated after the global financial crisis, you might find that your dreams of finding a job are a bit bleak. Gloomy times for everyone all over the world. Why? Because no one is employing, everyone is firing or downsizing, the general excuses are we have no budget, management stopped all applications etc. etc. Besides... when they do hire, they don't want to hire fresh graduates and carry the expense of training, they'd rather hire anyone with experience or not at all.

So in 2008, the government gave Tamkeen instructions to find jobs for 1912 unemployed university graduates that were registered with the government. What did Tamkeen do? By 2009, it had managed to place 1100 of those into public and private sector jobs. Tamkeen places these university graduates into internship programs with government and private sector organizations and is responsible for all expenses related to that trainee. Yes, Tamkeen pays their salary as well for the full period of their training which could range between 6 months to 2 years! What's the salary? BD300 or $800 not bad eh?

Plus, graduates are not just dumped into any job. Tamkeen provides the candidate with options and Tamkeen plays the mediator role to get the agreement of both parties.

Plus, Tamkeen provides support to graduates to get a loan to buy a laptop.

Plus, Tamkeen supports the trainee to get a credit card with a limit of upto 2 months salary.

Plus, they get registered in GOSI so they don't miss out on any social insurance during the period of their training.

Plus, a full training program.

Plus, Tamkeen encourages the employer to pay the trainee any extras like bonuses or extra salary to encourage the trainee to continue with the program.

Aaaaaahhhhhh! Who gives out free employees to organizations and who takes on salaries for 2 years? To provide it's people with the empowerment.... Bahrain does!

Change from within first:

A9eel is a mass publicity campaign, designed to change behavioural patterns and

instill positive work ethics. It uses cartoons, tv commercials/series and extensive road side advertising to tackle some of the work issues we have in our culture. Communicating the message in a pleasant and entertaining way. At the same time, it creates a medium for valuable resources for self-improvement. "A national media platform for all those who want to see themselves and ultimately, Bahrain, reach higher goals."

Bridging the Skills Gap:

 So ok, Tamkeen helps unemployed. So what? Well, no Tamkeen offers a huge set of training programs that help to enhance the skills of it's Bahraini citizens and provide them with the sound foundations for their development. Yes, yaaa more free programs to help certify anyone seeking to get a better education and life. Programs are:

AND you know what, these are not crappy programs. The nursing program is done in coordination with RCSI, that is a top notch medical university in Bahrain. The Aeronautic Maintenance Engineering Programme offers theoretical and practical training that will prepare you to become a licensed European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) PART 66 Aircraft Maintenance Engineer. The Hospitality Programme covers curriculum from the Educational Institute of the American Hotel & Lodging Association (EI-AHLA) and Northwood University, U.S.A...... Other well-known certifications... CISCO, ACCA, PRM, CAT.

Other programs in brief:

Enough examples? You get the picture? Yes, we offer our citizens everything they need to empower them. Yes, this was a government initiative. Yes, this was HRH King Hamad Bin Isa AlKhalifa, and the prime minister HH Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman AlKhalifa and ofcourse with great pride and respect our creative Crown Prince HH Shaikh Salman bin Hamad AlKhalifa. Yes, this is our Bahrain that you know nothing about. This is our amazing country and leadership.

Vision 2030

In the light of the recent events in Bahrain and the many questions, propaganda and false media coverage of our beautiful country, I have decided to put up a blog in the hope that some readers will see why the protestors have no rightful cause for their claims. My aim is to provide a detailed view of what our government has done in the past 10 years in the form of economic reform, initiated by HRH King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, our wise King and his son HRH Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa.


About Me: To begin, I am an independent citizen of Bahrain, not government employed, nor government sponsored nor am I any public figure. Infact, I am a nobody. I am a loyal citizen of this beautiful country, for no reason other than the fact that Bahrain has won my loyalty. I have seen my country torn apart and cannot comprehend the reasons behind this and cannot see a justification for such actions. I hope that even if one person reads this blog and thinks to himself "wow!" then i have achieved my purpose. It breaks my heart to see Bahrain's reputation at stake, when the government and the monarchy has given so much to it's people.

Where do I begin, I have thought of this a lot and my favorite government initiative is Tamkeen! However, I have to control my eagerness and urge to begin my discussion of Tamkeen as I have to start from point zero for the discussion! Ooooooooooh so hard!

So, the Bahrain Vision 2030 it is! According to Vision 2030 for Bahrain, developed by the Economic Development Board, "Vision 2030 is a comprehensive economic vision for Bahrain providing a clear direction for the continued development of our economy and at its heart is a shared goal of building a better life for every Bahraini. Vision 2030 has been developed over the course of four years in consultation with over 1000 Bahrainis from the public sector, private sector, academia and civil society. The Vision will be underpinned by a national economic strategy detailing strategic initiatives across a range of sectors which together will deliver the long term aspirations outlined the within the Vision." (quoted from EDB site)



Ok so just theory? Like every organization that has a vision and mission statement that is just a quote used for print material? Nope! No! Nein! Nay! Absolutely not! I was also skeptical at first, especially with all the rumors that came out. But by God, I was surprised and impressed and till today in shock and awe about how the government plans to help every Bahraini citizen. Please continue reading my blog to understand where my love for the King and the Crown Prince comes from.


To continue, while Bahrain is an oil producing country, we produce 184,000 bbl/day and to put it in perspective we produce less than 1.7% of what Saudi Arabia produces! That means that we cannot rely on oil production alone to sustain growth and to improve the well being of the Bahraini citizens. So while we get compared to many of the GCC countries, there is significant disparity in the capabilities of each as Bahrain produces 1% of the total GCC oil production! So basically it's a problem and we can't rely on oil alone. The Government of Bahrain needs to develop sustainable solutions and initiatives to ensure the well being of every Bahraini citizens. And that is being done.

Remember again, this is an initiative that started years ago and has already been implemented. So while I discuss the theory of it in this first blog, the realities of the execution of it will be discussed in my future writings.


So, the plan is as follows:


Sustainability - to build an economy with the prosperity of future generations in mind, by increasing the role of the private sector to assist the overburdened public sector. Unleashing innovation in the Bahraini citizens and providing them with government support along every step of the way. Also, through improving the quality of jobs by improving skills in Bahraini citizens by sponsored training and education. Yaaaaay, Tamkeen! Yes , government money spent on entrepreneurs and the work force to improve their living standards. Have you ever seen a government handing out free money to it's citizens with the sole purpose of improving their living standards? The USA handed billions of tax payers money to the bail out the biggest banks in the world but didn't provide a cent to the tax payers when their houses were being forfeited! Oh ya and we don't pay taxes!

Competitiveness - "Bahrain must shift from an economy built on oil to a more diverse economy that raises a broad middle class of Bahrainis who can earn more and enjoy better living standards. This requires people with the right skills for new and growth sectors. So we will not only focus on giving Bahrainis new skills but also continue to attract additional expertise from overseas companies" (quoted from EDB site). So government initiatives in Bahrain public schools and universities through Injaz Bahrain providing classes on entrepreneurship. Yup! Classes in school, encouraging students to widen their horizons and unleash their full potential and creativity. I wish I was as lucky as this new generation, they have a guided structure to their life. Remember your school days? I remember my school days, creativity was a sin more than a virtue and therefore any creative energies we had were directed at creating mischief!

Fairness - "more and better paid jobs, better access to training and skills development and a better quality of life for all Bahrainis. At the same time no Bahraini should be left behind; so those who cannot actively participate in the economy will be provided for". Big statements for such a small country? Well, when you have a government that cares about it's people, anything is possible! The government subsidises salaries!!! Have you seen that before? Yes, the private sector are encouraged to hire Bahraini's by subsidising their salaries for 2 years! And providing free training and development programs.



I thought I'd fall short of things to say, but I'm actually proud of my first writing attempt! Bahrain is truly a beautiful country, a country of opportunities, a country of wise rulers, a generous country that opens its arms to all. A country filled with kind and peaceful people who have no racial or religious discriminations. We have lived side by side for many years, a mosque next to a matam, with a church and a temple around the corner. Truly a beautiful country by all accounts. 


And as Mark Twain put it "I was seldom able to see an opportunity until it had ceased to be one." See the opportunities you have my fellow Bahraini's.