Government programmes to boost the skills of job-seekers have helped nearly 5,000 Bahrainis into work in the last three months, cutting the unemployment rate to 4.3 per cent, said HRH Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa.

The figures were released yesterday (January 2) as the Premier chaired the weekly Cabinet meeting, which was attended by HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

The number of vacancies topped 5,387 -  58 per cent of which involved high school graduates and 22 per cent targeted degree holders.

The Premier stressed the importance of value-added and productive jobs to ensure decent work opportunities for citizens. He also directed officials to reduce the jobless rate. He gave instructions to upgrade statistical procedures to keep abreast of the rate of unemployment.

"Unemployment rates have seen improvement with intensive efforts exerted by the government aimed at supporting and protecting the national workforce, diversification and development of training and qualification opportunities and improvement of standards of employment, skills and wages," explained Labour Minister Jameel Humaidan.

"Unemployment shrunk from 4.6 per cent in June to 4.3 per cent in September and it remained fixed until the end of the year," he added. "December was the best performing month in terms of the number of citizens recruited with 1,917 citizens being employed."

The unemployment rate of 4.3 per cent was below the international average, he pointed out.

Humaidan revealed the unemployment rate among women dropped by 6 per cent from 9,022 to 8,468 by the end of the fourth quarter.

There has also been a substantial increase in the number of citizens who received training under the supervision of the Supreme Council for Vocational Training. They rose from 14,402 trainees last October to 17,852 last December.

"Work is now underway to create and provide more job opportunities attractive to citizens," said Humaidan.

"We are planning to introduce a new scheme, With My Hand I Build My Country, to revive the handicraft profession, which after study has shown huge interest from young people, and with it will come appropriate career development programmes and proper wages."

Humaidan added work to end the issue of those sacked during the unrest would reach a conclusion before an International Labour Organisation (ILO) deadline expires next month. – TradeArabia News Service