Bahrain attracts $885m investment in 2020 despite Covid-19

Bahrain attracted $885 million (BHD333 million) in direct investments during 2020 through new companies setting up and expanding in the kingdom.

Several prominent companies have launched operations in the Kingdom, with investments from local, regional and international companies investing in sectors including financial services, manufacturing, logistics services, education, healthcare services, real estate, tourism, and ICT, the Bahrain Economic Development Board has said.

“Despite the challenges faced across the globe due to Covid-19, we were able to continue the momentum from 2019, attracting hundreds of millions of dollars in investment from around the world,” said Khalid Humaidan, chief executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board.

“Investors are increasingly turning to the region’s tried-and-tested business environment, where our commitment to building a pro-investor ecosystem is backed up by robust regulation. This, and our longstanding economic diversification efforts, show Bahrain is focused on enabling growth in a wide range of sectors.”

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According to the UN Conference on Trade and Development and the IMF, the size of accumulated direct investments compared to Bahrain’s GDP in 2019 was 78 per cent, almost double the global average of 42 per cent.