DOHA: His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa chaired the regular weekly Cabinet session, attended by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier, at the Gudaibiya Palace today.
HRH Premier informed the session about the brotherly visit he is making to the State of Qatar at the invitation of Father Amir, HH Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, and his meeting with the Qatari Amir, HH Shaikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, lauding the solid deep-rooted Bahraini-Qatari relations.
The Cabinet underscored the importance of the Premier’s visit in strengthening Bahraini-Qatari cooperation, and exchanging views on issues of common interest, as well as on the latest regional developments, a statement by the Cabinet Secretary-General, Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al Nasser, said.
HRH the Prime Minister also informed the Cabinet about the official visit of HRH the Crown Prince to the State of Kuwait, lauding the strong fraternal relations between the two countries, and the ever-progressing cooperation between them in various fields.
In this regard, the session stressed the importance of exchanging visits between leaders and senior officials of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in enhancing joint cooperation in order to be able to face regional challenges and keep up with developments.
HRH the Prime Minister highlighted the importance of the national initiatives to develop the agricultural sector and gave directives to encourage the holding of exhibitions that market Bahrain’s national products and boost investment in the agricultural sector.
In this context, the Cabinet lauded the role of the Bahrain International Gardens Show (BIGS 2017), held under the patronage of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and opened by Her Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Wife of HM the King and President of the Supreme Council for Women (SCW).
While reviewing memoranda on its agenda, the session discussed a draft resolution on determining the development projects that are exempted from taxation or “customs tariffs”, prepared as per a resolution by the GCC Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee.
The draft resolution was referred to the Executive Committee, as recommended by the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure, and presented by the Deputy Premier and Chairman of the Committee.
The session discussed a recommendation by the Ministerial Committee for Urbanisation and Infrastructure on amending Article 20 of the Municipalities Law promulgated by Decree-Law 35/2001, and referred it to the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs. The move is in line with the government’s keenness to revise services’ work procedures and mechanisms to ensure smooth flow of the implementation of government-funded projects and programmes.
The Cabinet approved a memorandum presented by the Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments on amending the executive bill of the Financial Disclosure Law. The session endorsed a draft decree on amending some provisions of the executive bill of the Financial Disclosure Law 32/2010, issued by Decree 82/2012.
The Cabinet also approved a draft edict on determining the categories of fees levied on licenses and services delivered by the Customs Affairs, in line with the memorandum presented by the Interior Minister and the recommendation submitted by the Ministerial Committee for Financial Affairs and Rationalising Expenditure regarding it.
A draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on endowments, to be signed between the ministries and departments of endowments and Islamic affairs in GCC countries, was also discussed during the meeting.
Presented by the Minister of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Endowments, the draft MoU was referred to the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs.
