He said that the MEPAR is the largest association for public administration institutions in the Middle East. In his concluding statement Ben Shams was on the conclusion of the 29th Conference of Public Administration, held in Bahrain between the 1st and 6th of June, adding that Bahrain has utilized much of the know-how offered by the participants coming from 70 countries across the globe.
Bahraini researchers and administrators’ working papers have left a huge positive impact on the conference as there were 49 out of 60 Bahraini working papers. This was equivalent of 78% of the Middle East work papers have been accepted and met the acclaim of the conferees, says Bin Shams boasting that the participants have also lauded the administrative approach of the Bahrain Government which strives to upgrade administrative sciences and applications at all the official bodies in the country.
Bin Shams said that the success of Bahrain to host the international conference lies in the inclusion of Arabic as a third official language of the conference along with English and French. Bahrain has also succeeded in incorporating many of the issues related to the public administration in the Gulf, Arab and Middle East regions. Arab women were strongly present as well, especially in the dialogue session held on the fifth day of the conference and dealt with Middle Eastern women’s roles in public administration.
The participation of a number of Ministers and senior Bahraini officials in the conference sessions has contributed a lot in reinforcing Bahrain’s public administration status on the international map, says Bin Shams. As he was referring to the contributions of Shaikha Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa Culture Minister, Samira bin Rajab, Minister of State for Media Affairs, Dr. Abdul Hussein Mirza, Minister of Electricity and Water Affairs, Fatima Al Balooshi Minister of Social Development, Mohammed Ali Al Qaed, Officer of the eGovernemnt Authority (eGA), Ahmed Al Bahar Former President of Civil Service Bureau, Adnan Al Manhood, the Information Technology and Knowledge Manager at Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (GPIC) and Adel Hajji of the Civil Service Bureau.
Bin Shams expressed sincere thanks to His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa for his patronage of the conference, and extended thanks as well to Deputy Prime Minister, His Excellency Shaikh Khalid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, for inaugurating the international event. “The Kingdom of Bahrain, led by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, accords high importance to public administration for its key role in the development of government institutions,” he says attributing fast-paced progress and growth in the development of state institutions to the wise directives of the Prime Minister and the close follow-up of and tireless efforts of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and First Deputy Prime Minister. “All those efforts have resulted in the construction of an integrated and advanced system of government aimed at upgrading the capacity of its public officials and the development of key skills with regard to public administration,” he added.
Bin Shams extended his thanks to all BIPA employees and affiliates whose efforts have had a significant impact on the success of the 29th international conference in Bahrain. He thanked all participants in the conference sessions, the lecturers, the key speakers and the attendees, especially those who have contributed with their experiences and expertise, praising in particular the working papers presented by the Bahraini participants, researchers and lecturers in the conference sessions and appreciated the assistance offered by all the sponsors, namely the Ministry of Culture, the Information Affairs Authority (IAA), the Gulf Petrochemical Industry (GPIC), the Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) and BMI.