BIM empowering businesswomen
Manama : The newly-launched Bahrain Investment Market (BIM) can serve as a key catalyst for job creation and economic development for the MENA region, as it offers an alternative option for a business segment which faces limited capital-raising opportunities, said CEO of the Bahrain Bourse, Shaikh Khalifa bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa.
Shaikh Khalifa was speaking at an orientation session held yesterday at the Bahrain Bourse (BHB) to engage and educate target segments about BIM, an equity market for growing business ventures in Bahrain and the wider MENA region.
The session was attended by the Bahrain Businesswomen Society (BBWS) headed by Feryal Abdulla Nass, Bahrain Young Entrepreneurs Association headed by Tariq Khalaf and members of the private sector at the BHB.
“Bahrain has long been a leader in the area of women empowerment in all walks of life, including the business realm,” said Shaikh Khalifa while highlighting BIM’s ability to cater to the needs of companies who are looking to raise capital to fund their future growth, such as entrepreneurial ventures and mature family businesses.
According to the Bahraini Women in Numbers 2015 report issued by the Supreme Council for Women, women held 41 per cent of commercial registrations as of June 2014. The report also cited that women owned 56pc of Bahrain’s sustainable active commercial registrations (i.e. those active for more than five years).
Shaikh Khalifa also pointed out that the increase in women entrepreneurship in the MENA region is driven by access to global marketplaces through the Internet and social media, young populations, and national initiatives seeking to integrate women in the workforce and diversify away from oil.
A report by Education for Employment, YouGov and Bayt.com, notes that if women’s participation in labour markets in the MENA region was on par with that of men’s, the regional GDP could rise by 47pc over the next decade, and the MENA could realise $600 billion in economic impact annually.
Head of the Economic Affairs Committee at the Bahrain Businesswomen Society Naema Al-Bulooshi stated, “The Bahrain Investment Market offers a tremendous opportunity for us as businesswomen to access the capital we need to take our businesses to the next level and increase our contribution to national economic development.”
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