Private sector ‘yet to explore benefits of FTA with America’

Bahrain’s private sector should do more to take advantage of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US, according to officials and economic experts. The FTA agreement with the US has great potential and the private sector must take further steps to take better advantage of the agreement such as by investing in the United States, according to Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism Zayed Al Zayani and Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Sameer Nass.

They were sharing their views on the topic during a panel discussion session during an event yesterday. The event ‘US-Bahrain Trade Envisioning the future Roundtable Discussion’ organized by AmCham (Bahrain) in collaboration with Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Economic Development Board was held yesterday at the Capital Club premises at the Bahrain Financial Harbour. Tom J Donohue, President, and CEO of the US Chamber of Commerce and Qays Al Zubi, President of AmCham were also in attendance.

Mr. Nass said, “Regarding the FTA that was signed with the United States, unfortunately, I see that we as the private sector have not taken advantage of that as much as we should. This is due to many reasons, the main reason being communication.” “It has been 12 years since the FDA has come into effect and what we have done so far is very small and there are huge opportunities available.

“These kinds of visits by officials such as Mr. Donohue will help enhance the relationship with the US. “We as the chamber will also strive to create a direct link between the Bahrain Chamber of commerce with the US chamber to have more communications. The emphasis of the relationship can be on the SME, which is the keyword these days, in Bahrain as well as the US,” he said.