Bahrain needs to set its sights on global expansion to ensure future prosperity, Crown Prince and Economic Development Board (EDB) Chairman Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa has said.

The financial sector has been at the centre of the kingdom's economic success, and will need to lead this economic expansion drive, he told a gathering of top financiers at the Bahrain International Circuit last night (June 6).

And all the ingredients for success are already in place. "We are the freest economy in the Arab world," he told bankers at the event, which was organised by the Bankers' Society of Bahrain and held under the patronage of Shaikh Salman.

"More companies in the financial sector chose Bahrain as a base last year than any other country in the Mena region. We are the Middle East's financial capital, and the world's centre for the burgeoning Islamic finance sector."

The kingdom now provided a solid economic base for further growth, partly thanks to those present in the room, he said.

"Together we have made significant strides. Our GDP is growing steadily and sustainably at an average of more than six per cent year-on-year since 2000, and at 8p in 2006."

"Our financial sector has been at the heart of our diversification strategy for decades," he told the assembled bankers.

"You made the single largest contribution to our economy - more than a quarter of our total GDP." But the value that can be created by the financial sector goes far beyond monthly salaries, he said.

"The creation of high-value jobs is a critical part of our vision. It is imperative that we not only equip people with the right skills, but also provide them with the opportunities to use those skills individually and collectively."

The EDB has identified four principles to guide the kingdom's economic growth. The first is a commitment to fairness and justice; the second is competitiveness; the third is an emphasis on sustainability; and the last is a devotion to developing local talent.

"Opportunity for all must be at the heart of our national policy if we are truly to build a successful future," he said. And the banking sector would be the backbone of innovative and equitable growth.

"Bahrain was the first to recognise the use of coinage as a means of accounting our trade and financial activities. Indeed this was a critical factor in building our earlier reputation as a financial centre. Something simple, but it led to great things."

The key now was to concentrate on similar, small niche opportunities - from alternatives and venture capital to security services and IT - that can be grown into global opportunities for the kingdom, he said.- TradeArabia News Service