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Women's role in judiciary praised in Bahrain

Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Wife of His Majesty the King and President of the Supreme Council for Women (SCW), has announced that the Bahraini Women's Day 2016 will celebrate women in the legal and judicial fields.
Bahraini women have proved outstanding ability to assume their leading role and attained many achievements which have reflected positively on their performance in the legal and judicial field, she said.
Princess Sabeeka said that Bahraini women's constant keenness on entering the legal and judicial field, commitment to the sustainability of their participation and establishing themselves as a necessary option in terms of competence and experience, which are basic required for the judicial and legal sector in the kingdom, have entitled them to reach leadership posts in the in their institutions, within the framework of the existing support of the political leadership in the kingdom to women and its keenness on ensuring their effective participation, and thanks to the available equal opportunities in all fields of work.
The SCW president stressed that Bahraini women's success in the legal and judicial fields indicates the positive changes taking place in the Bahraini society on the need to enhance women's contributions to various domains.
Since the 1970s, Bahraini women have held numerous posts in the legal sector, and reached the posts of chief prosecutor and judges, she said, adding that they should continue proving their competence.
Statistics indicate that about 447 female lawyers are registered in Bahrain, or 53 per cent of the total number of lawyers. Bahraini women also make up about 10 % per cent of judicial posts, including judges, court president and members of the Constitutional Court. Five per cent of chief prosecutors in Bahrain are women. Regarding female judges and their equivalents, their number has risen to 21 over the past five years, marking an increase of 5 per cent These figure indicate that Bahraini women represent 9 per cent of the affiliates of the Judicial Branch.
10 million tourists visited Bahrain in 2015
More than 10 million tourists visited Bahrain last year and the Kingdom is looking forward to an annual increase of approximately eight per cent this year, according to Bahrain Authority for Tourism and Exhibitions (BATE)'s acting CEO, Shaikh Khalid bin Humood Al Khalifa.
Shaikh Khalid said last week that the government has put in huge efforts culminating in the selection of Manama as the Gulf Capital for Tourism2016, and we have succeeded in the allocation of a budget for this important event. We have inked agreements to hold numerous family entertainment activities to attract more tourists from the sisterly Arab Gulf states, he said.
Shaikh Khalid said plans were underway according to a previous study and not randomly. The Directorate of Tourism assisted with specialists had conducted a study to glean the wishes of Arab Gulf tourists incoming to Bahrain and to find out about their interests. In the activities, it was observed that they coincided with the holiday season in Gulf states - especially in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.
The survey has shown that the Gulf tourist prefers staying in apartments by 34 per cent in contrast with 26 per cent for rooms. This led the directorate to encourage more investments in hotel apartments for the purpose of filling the gap in this sector, he added.
Supreme Environment Council to launch e-licensing system
The Supreme Council for the Environment (SCE) will start implementing an e-licencing system by the end of the first quarter of this year. Under the hi-tech scheme, investors will able to submit applications for licenses to import chemical substances and products, pay fees online.
The cyber licensing system is in compliance with the Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) Phase-out Management Plan (HPMP).
The council launched the environment-friendly strategy last September in Bahrain. The first phase of the project is financed by the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol.

• Bahrain