MANAMA: His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, who chaired the weekly Cabinet meeting at Gudaibiya Palace, issued directives to keep citizens welfare as a key for the Government policies.
HRH the Crown Prince directed that mechanisms be established to facilitate the provision of direct government subsidies to citizens in accordance with the approved regulations while maintaining the criteria currently in place, in order to ease the process for citizens benefiting from the cash subsidy programme.
The Cabinet Secretary-General, HE Dr. Yasser bin Issa Al-Nasser, issued the details of the Cabinet meeting.
The Cabinet condemned the terrorist bombing attack in Mogadishu, Somalia which caused dozens of deaths and injuries. The Cabinet reiterated Bahrain’s rejection of all forms of terrorism and conveyed its condolences to the government and people of Somalia.
The Cabinet extended its congratulations to His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the Prime Minister, His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister, and the people of Bahrain, on the celebration of the new calendar year of 2020. The Cabinet commended the advancement of the Kingdom in all fields during the year of 2019 and wished 2020 to bring even further development for the Kingdom of Bahrain and its people as well as world peace and prosperity.
The Cabinet welcomed the choice of Manama as the Capital of Arab Tourism 2020, noting that this clearly demonstrates the historical and cultural importance of the city and confirms the Kingdom’s importance as a destination for regional and global tourism. This is the second time Manama has been chosen as Capital of Arab Tourism.
The Cabinet then praised the successful prevention of a terrorist operation in the city of Dammam and expressed its continuing support of all the measures taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in order to preserve its security and stability.
The Cabinet welcomed the signing of the agreement to set the unified military headquarters of the Gulf Cooperation Council in Riyadh, as it reflects the determination of member states to further increase joint security and defence cooperation and coordination.
In order to achieve the royal directives of HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to take into account the needs of citizens when setting government fees, and based on the recommendation of the Government Executive Committee, chaired by HRH the Crown Prince, the Cabinet decided to exempt the fees of 200 government services from 11 government agencies. As a result, 400 government services have now been exempted from fees during 2019. The Cabinet instructed the Minister of Finance and National Economy, to coordinate with government agencies, to undertake the necessary technical and legal procedures.
Based on the recommendation of the Government Executive Committee, the Cabinet approved a draft resolution to amend the fees relating to the services of the General Directorate for Nationality, Passports, and Residency Affairs, which was submitted by the Minister of Interior, with the aim of developing the procedures regarding entry visas to the Kingdom of Bahrain and facilitating procedures for visitors.
In this regard, the prices of a one-year visit visa were reduced from BD85 to BD40 and those of a five-year visit visa from BD170 to BD60. In addition, the length of student visas was expanded from one to five years and the duration of diplomatic visas from three to five years. The visas website will be modified to add the new prices and categories as well as to process electronic payments for visas submitted in Bahrain’s Embassies. The changes in prices will take effect from January 2020.
The Cabinet approved a draft law submitted by the Ministry of Housing amending the article 3 of the Decree law No. 10 of 1976 regarding housing, which aims to enable citizens to sell their property in a manner consistent with their needs following the approval of the Ministry of Housing, given that they have paid off their mortgage. The draft law, which eliminates the seven-year ownership requirement, was referred to the legislative authority according to constitutional and legal procedures.
The Cabinet approved a draft resolution to re-organise the Accountability Committee at the National Health Regulatory Authority.
The Cabinet reviewed a memorandum submitted by the Minister of Interior on the Arab Customs Cooperation Agreement and referred the memorandum to the Ministerial Committee for Legal and Legislation Affairs.
The Cabinet approved for the Government to cover the 2019 electricity and water bills of the common parts of the government housing apartments projects. The Cabinet instructed the Ministry of Housing, and the Electricity and Water Authority to prepare a study on the use of smart tariffs and best practices for transmission and distribution.
The Cabinet reviewed a memorandum submitted by the Minister of Health on plans and projects implemented by the Ministry of Health, which will achieve the goals established in the Government Programme 2019-2022.
The Cabinet also reviewed three ministerial reports on the outcomes of the 17th conference for ministers responsible for higher education and scientific research, and the outcomes of the meeting of the board of directors of the Regional Center for Educational Planning (RCEP) – both submitted by the Minister of Education. Furthermore, the Cabinet reviewed the outcomes of the meetings of the 25th session of Executive Office of Arab Ministerial Council for Tourism and the 22nd session of Arab Tourism Council, which was submitted by the Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism.
