Bahrain continues to have the highest level of economic freedom among all other Arab nations, says the Economic Freedom of the Arab World 2011 Annual Report, published by the leading Canadian public policy think tank, the Fraser Institute.
Published in partnership with the International Research Institute of Oman and the Cairo office of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty, the report puts Bahrain ahead of Lebanon in second place and Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates in joint third spot.
The report was released at the start of the annual Economic Freedom of the Arab World meeting in Beirut, which attracts delegates from all over the Middle East.
“The link between economic freedom and prosperity is undeniable,” said Fred McMahon, Fraser Institute vice-president for international policy research.
The countries that score highly in terms of economic freedom also offer their people the best quality of life, he added.
The Economic Freedom of the Arab World Report, published annually since 2005, compares and ranks Arab nations in five areas of economic freedom, namely size of government, including its expenditures, taxes and enterprises; commercial and economic law and security of property rights; access to sound money; freedom to trade internationally; and the regulation of credit, labour, and business.
The report says that economic freedom is based on the cornerstones of personal choice, voluntary exchange, freedom to compete, and security of private property.
The encouraging news from the Economic Freedom Report comes as HRH the Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa opened the Invest in Bahrain 2011 Forum in Manama.
“Bahrain has always been open to embracing joint Gulf and Arab work and to attracting investments,” HRH the Premier said. The Prime Minister highlighted Bahrain’s strong investment legislation and attractive incentive packages.
The Invest in Bahrain 2011 Forum had attracted 1000 delegates from all across the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and further afield to discuss investment opportunities in Bahrain.
Speaking at the opening of the Forum, the President of the General Union of Arab Chambers of Commerce, Adnan Kassar said, the Kingdom would remain one of the leading countries in the region in economic openness and freedom. “This is true in financial and banking services and at the level of investment incentives.”