Bahrain International Property Exhibition (Bipex) will be back much stronger and better this year in October with several leading developers and real estate companies from across the region besides major players from the UK, Asia, Turkey and Bosnia taking part.

It is being organised by Bahrain Society of Engineers (BSE) from October 26 to 28 at the Bahrain International Exhibition and Convention Centre under the patronage of Bahrain's Deputy Prime Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, .

Announcing the launch at a press conference in Downtown Rotana, the chairman of the organising committee Mohammed Khalil Alsayed said: "This year, Bipex returns to underscore the critical role of the kingdom’s economic diversification by highlighting its major achievements in infrastructure, real estate, leisure projects and the pipeline of competitively valued and attractive offerings."

The expo, which is celebrating 10 years of its success, will this year strive to shed light on sustainable development in the kingdom and promote new investment opportunities, he stated.

"We have a very simple mission and that is to encourage an ever-deeper understanding of Bahrain’s potential in the real estate market and its strategic positioning as a global commercial and tourism hub for investors," remarked Alsayed.

"With increasing signs of a new economic order trying to take root globally, as seen through the Brexit vote and a new policy environment in the US, we believe that the opportunity for regional consolidation in this part of the world offers greater hope," he said.

"For trade and commerce, and the real estate sector, this can be another window for select markets in the region to offer competitive products. In the case of Bahrain, our niche market with a range of offerings catering to different market segments at attractive price-points would be key," he noted.

Alsayed pointed out that the regulatory environment in Bahrain had also been strengthened with good protection to investors and buyers of property.

"The general economic conditions are improving gradually, and with oil prices hovering in the $50-per-barrel range, we are getting used to the new normal," he noted.

"However, reports from national authorities have indicated a resilience of the real estate sector over the past several quarters. The aggregate real estate trading volume in 2016 reached BD1.04 billion ($2.8 billion)," stated Alsayed, citing EDB's last quarterly report released in January.

According to him, this resilience is also due to the supportive policy framework that considers end-users and industry players’ views.

"Importantly, the government’s role in embarking on big-ticket infrastructure projects across the kingdom has helped provide a greater level of maturity to the market while stabilising the industry in times of need," he noted.

Bahrain was last year witness to the announcement of an IPO (initial public offering) of the country's first ever REIT (real estate investment trust) which commenced trading on the Bahrain Bourse in January.

"The overall real estate landscape in Bahrain continues to adapt and evolve and Bipex will project that progress to the public and boost confidence in our economy," he added.

Last year, the expo attracted more than 8,000 unique visitors, of which about 24 per cent were from outside Bahrain including significant B2B traffic.

Over the three-day period, a total of 40 exhibitors showcased the real estate assets worth $20 billion last year, Masoud Al Hermi, the president of the BSE stated.

During the past few years, he stated, the kingdom's real estate market has witnessed a remarkable recovery and improvement.

"Many real estate projects were launched, and this year we shall witness the official inauguration and delivery of many others, in addition to the launch of several new projects during the year," observed Al Hermi.

On the other hand, the Ministerial Committee for Reconstruction and Infrastructure, which is involved in the study of the stalled projects, contributed to the re-activation of some of these projects and to seek suitable solutions for others, which has contributed to boost confidence in the ability of the Bahraini economy to overcome difficulties in an appropriate legislative and legal environment, he added.

Al Hermi pointed out that the government had contributed immensely in boosting investor confidence in the local real estate market by investing in infrastructure projects worth a whopping $32 billion with the focus being on the energy, water, transportation and housing sectors by 2020.

This coincides with expectations of increased demand for various real estate products, mainly due to the increase in the total population and in the number of tourists, which in 2016 totalled about 15 million tourists, he said.

"We at BSE maintain confidence in development of the market conditions for the better in the future, and based on this confidence, we are determined to re-launch Bipex 2017 this year in its 10th edition," he added.-TradeArabia News Service