Abdullah Al Alami*
7 December 2024
The 12th edition of the Bahraini Farmers Market kicks off today, December 7, in partnership with the National Initiative for Agricultural Development. It is truly a great opportunity to appreciate the efforts of farmers and local plant merchants. This is an occasion for Bahrain to once again celebrate achieving a qualitative leap in the 2024 competitiveness ranking issued by the World Competitiveness Center, advancing 9 places since its inclusion in 2022, to occupy the 21st place globally in 2024.
This is also a “fruitful” occasion as the Kingdom ranked first globally in sub-indicators and among the top ten in other sub-indicators for building an economy that attracts investments. Thus, Manama created a stimulating economic environment with competitive advantages for business owners through effective partnerships and by adopting international best practices. That’s not all, Bahrain also ranked eighth globally in the government policies index to adapt to new changes.
This year, 33 local farmers, 20 shops, 64 productive families, agricultural companies, nurseries, craftsmen, and educational activities participated in the show. Fruit trees were planted during the launch of the “Qarm Bahrain” initiative, and a marketing platform was provided that facilitates farmers’ access to thousands of citizens and residents. Here, the citizens proved how to adapt to challenges, as Bahrain ranked ninth in the labor force productivity index.
My final words, despite the fluctuations of oil prices and international political pressure on regional and global growth, the Bahraini citizen has succeeded in adapting to current changes and strengthening his commitment to environmental sustainability through positive interaction with the national action plan to achieve carbon neutrality and the successful partnership between the public and private sectors in driving agricultural development.
*Saudi writer and president of the Arab Society for Human Resources Management
