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Bahrain: Bahrain Government Profile 2012

2012/02/21

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Bahrain Government Profile 2012

Renowned for its transparent business climate, Bahrain is seeking to join liberal economic reforms with a wider process of political and social change. Upon coming to power in 1999, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa began a process of steady democratisation, instituting a constitutional monarchy along with parliamentary elections and women’s’ right to vote.
As a leader of the economic reforms under the Economic Vision 2030 as well as a strong proponent of governmental reforms, Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa is helping to further this spirit of political liberalisation in coordination with economic advances. Labour reforms have emerged as an important point of political/economic convergence, as the reforms, which target both the national and expatriate community, coupled with the job creation that the Vision 2030 plan calls for, are expected to reduce socioeconomic tensions.
Along with the cancellation of the expatriate worker sponsorship system, a move lauded by human rights groups, the labour market has also seen a significant increase in the participation of women to about 24% of the workforce – one of the highest rates in the region.
As a member of the GCC, Bahrain saw increased economic integration with its regional counterparts in 2008 with the launch of the Gulf Common Market at the start of the year. Some headway has also been made in the GCC monetary union, though there is some way to go before it will be up and running. Outside of the Gulf, Bahrain is maintaining existing ties with Western powers like the UK and US, while also reinforcing links with Asia, including a free trade agreement signed with Singapore in late 2008.
Government type: 

republic

Administrative divisions: 

14 regions (regions, singular - region); Dakar, Diourbel, Fatick, Kaffrine, Kaolack, Kedougou, Kolda, Louga, Matam, Saint-Louis, Sedhiou, Tambacounda, Thies, Ziguinchor

Independence: 

4 April 1960 (from France)

National holiday: 

Independence Day, 4 April (1960)

Constitution: 

adopted 7 January 2001

Legal system: 

based on French civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts in Constitutional Court; the Council of State audits the government's accounting office; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations

Suffrage: 

18 years of age; universal

Legislative branch: 

bicameral Parliament consisting of the Senate, reinstituted in 2007, (100 seats; 35 indirectly elected with the remaining 65 members to be appointed by the president) and the National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (150 seats; 90 members elected by direct popular vote with the remaining members elected by proportional representation from party lists to serve five-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 19 August 2007 (next to be held - NA); National Assembly - last held on 3 June 2007 (next to be held 2012); note - the National Assembly in December 2005 voted to postpone legislative elections originally scheduled for 2006; legislative elections were first rescheduled to coincide with the 25 February 2007 presidential elections and later rescheduled for 3 June 2007; the June election was boycotted by 12 opposition parties, including the former ruling Socialist Party, which resulted in a record-low 35% voter turnout election results: Senate results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PDS 34, AJ/PADS 1, 65 appointed by the president; National Assembly results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - SOPI Coalition 131, other 19

Judicial branch: 

Constitutional Court; Council of State; Court of Final Appeals or Cour de Cassation; Court of Appeals

Political parties and leaders : 

African Party of Independence [Majhemout DIOP]; Alliance for the Republic-Yakaar [Macky Sall]; And-Jef/African Party for Democracy and Socialism or AJ/PADS [Landing SAVANE]; Alliance of Forces of Progress or AFP [Moustapha NIASSE]; Democratic League-Labor Party Movement or LD-MPT [Dr. Abdoulaye BATHILY]; Front for Socialism and Democracy/Benno Jubel or FSD/BJ [Cheikh Abdoulaye Bamba DIEYE]; Gainde Centrist Bloc or BGC [Jean-Paul DIAS]; Independence and Labor Party or PIT [Amath DANSOKHO]; Jef-Jel [Talla SYLLA]; National Democratic Rally or RND [Madior DIOUF]; People's Labor Party or PTP [El Hadji DIOUF]; Reform Party or PR [Abdourahim AGNE]; Rewmi Party [Idrissa Seck]; Senegalese Democratic Party or PDS [Abdoulaye WADE]; Socialist Party or PS [Ousmane Tanor DIENG]; SOPI Coalition [Abdoulaye WADE] (a coalition led by the PDS); Union for Democratic Renewal or URD [Djibo Leyti KA]

Political pressure groups and leaders: 

other: labor; students; Sufi brotherhoods, including the Mourides and Tidjanes; teachers

International organization participation: 

ACP, AfDB, AU, CPLP (associate), ECOWAS, FAO, FZ, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURCAT, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WADB (regional), WAEMU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Flag description: 

three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), yellow, and red with a small green five-pointed star centered in the yellow band; uses the popular pan-African colors of Ethiopia

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