The positive effect of openness, competitiveness and free economy in the telecommunications sector on optimising services at competitive prices has been stressed. State Minister for Telecommunications Affairs Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa underscored the sector's contribution to economic and social development in the prosperous era of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. He pointed out that ever since the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector in 2002, and with the increasing competitiveness between the supplying companies, a perpetual growth has been recorded of those companies which has contributed directly and indirectly to development of the national economy.
The minister added that the memo submitted by the State Ministry for Telecommunications Affairs to the Cabinet shed light on the main achievements brought about in this vital sector. He also asserted the ministry's keenness, since its inception in 2012, on backing the government's initiatives towards establishing an information community, shifting to a digital economy and building a national network for the superfast broadband services. He underlined the advanced status of Bahrain's telecommunications sector at the global level, pointing out that according to the Global Competitiveness Report (2014-2015), which was released recently by the World Economic Forum, Bahrain ranked eighth internationally in terms of Internet users and 5th in terms of the number of subscriptions at the broadband services.
The State Minister for Telecommunications Affairs also revealed that according to this year's World Bank report, the prices of broadband services in Bahrain proved to be one of the lowest rates internationally, taking into consideration the individual's monthly income. He added that this rate is 3 to 5% lower than the globally-determined one, affirming that Bahrain is a model in fully liberalising the telecommunications sector.