Bahrain : The Labour and Social Development Ministry today held a ceremony to honour outstanding workers and entrepreneurs, in the presence of the Chairman of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI), Sameer Abdulla Nass, representatives of workers’ trade unions and several officials.
Addressing the ceremony, Labour and Social Development Minister, Jameel bin Mohammed Ali Humaidan, conveyed greetings from His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to the honourees, as well as HM’s pride in the national workforce, the main engine of the comprehensive development in the kingdom.
The minister highlighted HM the King’s constant keenness to appreciate hard-working employees, citing the royal patronage of the annual workers’ honouring ceremony.
He said that as a result of the exceptional circumstances resulting from the spread of the novel Coronavirus pandemic, the Labour Ministry is holding a miniature form of the annual ceremony in which select distinguished models of workers, directors, entrepreneurs and owners of private institutions are honoured, expressing hope that the Ministry will be able to hold the 36th edition of the annual honouring ceremony next year, under the patronage of HM the King.
He asserted that thanks to HM the King’s leadership and the efforts of the government, led by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, the kingdom has managed to mitigate the effects of the pandemic successfully, by turning the challenges into success opportunities at all levels, affirming that Bahrain’s experience in dealing with the repercussions of COVID-19 is an example to be emulated, particularly regarding the mitigation of its impacts on the labour market.
Humaidan added that the government, led by HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, seeks strenuously to raise economic growth, diversify the sources of national income and create promising job opportunities for the citizens.
In this regard, he highlighted the government’s keenness to develop plans and launch policies aimed at stimulating the growth of the labour market, citing the cabinet’s adoption of the Economic Recovery Plan, setting the development priorities during the coming period, the foremost of which is the creation of promising job opportunities, making Bahrainis the first choice in the local labour market, creating 20,000 jobs for nationals and training 10,000 Bahrainis annually until 2024.
He affirmed that the ambitious blueprint had been introduced following the success of Bahrain, thanks to the efforts of its citizens, including employers, workers and many government agencies, in achieving outstanding results in terms of reducing layoffs during this exceptional period, and in implementing the second edition of the National Employment Programme, which has been able to exceed the preset target of employing 25,000 Bahrainis in 2021 in the private sector.
The Labour Minister expressed pride in all the honoured private sector workers, businessmen and all dedicated personnel across various economic and commercial sectors.
Then, the Labour Minister presented certificates of appreciation and commemorative shields to distinguished companies, institutions and entrepreneurs, as well as hard-working employees representing various production sectors.
The honouree list included distinguished entrepreneurs and directors, outstanding small enterprises and workers with special needs, in addition to workers from various production and service sectors.
The honourees expressed their deep pride in being honoured by the state, noting that this kind gesture reflects the government’s interest in encouraging and recognising efforts of the dedicated national competencies.
They also asserted that their honouring is a catalyst for others to be more dedicated and increase their contributions to the economic and social development witnessed by the Kingdom.
