Fake Builders Boom

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

More than half of Bahrain’s building trade licences are held by housewives with no link to the industry, MP Ali Saqer Al Dosari told Parliament yesterday, warning that the sector has become a front for illegal business cover-ups.

“There are around 13,000 contractors in the country, yet more than half — between 50 and 70 per cent — of trade licences are in the names of women who have no stake in the work,” he said.

Practice Al Dosari pointed to a practice where licence holders receive payments ranging from BD100 to BD200 from Asian workers who use their names to operate. “The workers are the ones signing contracts, taking on legal duties, and running the show, while the licence holders sit on the sidelines,” he said. “When something goes wrong, or when workers abscond, it leaves a mess in the courts.” The size of many registered contracting firms was also a concern.

“Seventy per cent of contractors have no more than five workers listed under their licences. That might be enough for small repair jobs, but not for construction, extensions, or demolition work,” he said. Al Dosari also raised the lack of engineering oversight in the field.

“More than 80 per cent of building licences don’t have a single licensed engineer tied to them,” he said. “This means a big chunk of the sector is working without proper supervision, which can’t be left as it is.”

Disputes

Court cases linked to construction disputes are piling up, he warned.

“People are getting caught out — whether it’s unfinished work, shoddy structures, or contractors disappearing with the money.”

Al Dosari called for tighter rules to stop unqualified operators from running the trade.

“No contractor should be licensed unless a qualified engineer is in charge of all work under clear, written agreements that protect everyone involved,” he said. “We can also take lessons from Gulf and Arab countries that have already tackled these problems.”

He pointed to the sheer size of the industry.

“This sector is expected to be worth over $3 billion this year — about BD1.2 billion. Fixing its flaws isn’t just about keeping order; it’s about making sure people don’t get burned,” he said.