Manama, Bahrain – 27 December 2017: The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) recently revealed investment in Bahrain’s tourism infrastructure reached over US $13 billion. The figure covers 14 prominent projects that will further boost growth in the Kingdom’s tourism and leisure sector.
The sector witnessed rapid growth in the past year, with the total number of tourists visiting the Kingdom increasing by 12.8% in the first nine months of 2017. The Kingdom is also witnessing further enhancement to its tourism infrastructure to support this growth, which plays a significant role in Bahrain’s economic diversification efforts.
“The total number of tourists visiting Bahrain has reached 8.7 million during the first nine months of this year, a significant number considering our resident population of only 1.5 million people.” said Dr. Simon Galpin, Managing Director of Bahrain EDB.
“The tourism sector is one of the key investment sectors we recognise as having a strong competitive advantage for Bahrain. It contributes 6.3% to the country’s GDP, and is set to grow significantly, as the number of visitors and leisure activities increase. Bahrain continues to reaffirm its position as a tourism destination of choice with a number of new hotels, retail and leisure developments currently underway.”
The tourism investment projects are part of Bahrain’s large-scale infrastructure development programme, valued at over US $32 billion, and targeting a wide range of sectors. This includes US $10 billion of investments undertaken by government-related entities (holding companies, funds), US $7.5 billion under the auspices of the GCC Development Fund, and US $15 billion worth of investment by private sector entities.
As part of these developments, Bahrain International Airport is undergoing a US $1.1 billion modernisation programme, set to increase passenger capacity from nine to 14 million per year by 2020. This will go hand in hand with the new five and four-star hotels and resorts in the tourism development pipeline that will cater to current and future demand.
Other infrastructure investment projects include the development of a number of shopping malls such as Dilmunia Mall and the Marassi Galleria shopping complex, to join the recently-opened US $159 million Avenues Mall at Bahrain Bay.
Furthermore, Bahrain’s tourism strategy also extends to medical-tourism projects through King Abdullah Medical City, and mixed-use real estate projects such as Bahrain Bay, Bahrain Marina, Diyar Al Muharraq, Water Garden City, Dilmunia, and Marassi Al Bahrain where Emaar Hospitality brands such as The Address Hotel and Vida are under construction.
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Notes to editors:
Further information:
Telephone: 17589966
internationalmedia@bahrainedb.com
About The Bahrain Economic Development Board (“EDB”)
The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) is an investment promotion agency with overall responsibility for attracting investment into the Kingdom and supporting initiatives that enhance the investment climate.
The EDB works with the government and both current and prospective investors to ensure that Bahrain’s investment climate is attractive, to communicate the key strengths, and to identify where opportunities exist for further economic growth through investment.
The EDB focuses on several economic sectors that capitalise on Bahrain’s competitive advantages. These sectors include financial services, manufacturing, ICT, tourism, logistics and transport.
For more information on the Bahrain EDB visit www.bahrainedb.com.
