5th Arab Housing Conference kicks off

Manama, Dec. 11 (BNA): Deputised by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Deputy Premier, Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa opened here today the fifth Arab Housing Conference. The two-day conference, themed "the Future Role of the Public Sector in Social Housing", is held under the patronage of HM the King. Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla extended sincere thanks and appreciation to HM the King for deputising him to open the Arab Housing Conference on his behalf, stressing that the royal patronage of the event reflects the King’s interest in housing which, he said, is among the priorities of the work of the government, led by His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, and supported by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Premier. The deputy premier welcomed the participants, including Arab housing and construction ministers, high-profile officials from the UN and the Arab League, businessmen, investors and economic housing and real estate experts, wishing them a happy stay in the kingdom. He expressed hope that the conference will succeed in coming up with recommendations that support Arab countries’ sustainable urban development plans, and develop Arab housing policies. The deputy premier said that Bahrain should be proud of being a country with a rich housing record that is laden with landmark achievements and advanced housing policies aimed at providing decent housing for the citizens, adding that Bahrain was the first country in the region in building fruitful partnerships with the private sector to encourage companies to play a complementary role to the government in providing social housing for the citizens. He affirmed that since the establishment of the modern state in the 1970s, Bahrain has always supported all efforts aimed at ensuring the right to housing for the citizens, given its positive social, economic, health and environmental impacts. Organised by the Ministry of Housing in cooperation with the Arab Housing and Construction Ministers’ Council, the conference aims to shed light on the role of the public sector in providing social housing, in addition to the future roles to be played by the private sector in providing social housing. During the opening session, Housing Minister, Bassim bin Yaqoob Al-Hamar, delivered a statement in which he extended heartfelt thanks and gratitude to HM the King for patronising the 5th Arab Housing Conference. He said that holding the conference in Bahrain is of great importance as the housing is among the priorities of the leadership, the government and the people. The conference also coincides with the kingdom’s launch of five housing projects at the same time, highlighting the government’s keenness to ensure that the new towns meet the requirements of the 11th sustainable development goal, which aims to "make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable". The minister asserted that keenness to ensure the sustainability of the provision of housing services to the citizens in the long-run, and the need to adopt the Economic Vison of Bahrain, 2030, have encouraged the launch of partnership initiatives with the private sector to provide more options for the citizens to receive housing services. He wished the participants every success, hoping that the "Manama Declaration", to be issued during the conference’s closing session, will be a document whose recommendations will contribute to developing housing policies in all Arab countries.