Bahraini investors will be invited to push ahead with livestock and agriculture projects on the land granted to Bahrain in Sudan.

The Cabinet in its weekly session has ordered Municipalities and Urban Planning Affairs Ministry to co-ordinate with the Sudanese Embassy in Bahrain and the Bahraini Embassy in Sudan to finalise land registration, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

An agreement for the land was signed by both countries on June 25 and the issue will now be reviewed.

"The ministerial committee for financial affairs will first look into the feasibility study related to opening the land for Bahraini investors before they are called in," Minister of State for Information Affairs and official government spokeswoman Sameera Rajab told a press conference after the Cabinet session yesterday.

"But whenever work on the land starts, we are expecting that our livestock and agricultural needs will be met."

Bahrain has only just overcome a livestock shortage prompted by the Australian government halting live exports, after one of its shipments was turned away for allegedly containing unhealthy animals in August 2012.

The shipment was later rejected by Qatar, meaning the sheep spent much longer at sea than they were supposed to, and the animals were reportedly subjected to inhumane treatment when they were finally accepted in Pakistan.

Imports from Australia resumed in April, after more than a year and a half of relying on imports from Somalia, but Bahrain has also faced obstacles importing fruit and vegetables from Arab countries hit by turmoil, such as Syria. - TradeArabia News Service