Bahrain’s business licensing system Sijilat, has been enhanced with new e-services that would cut down the steps to access services by 60 per cent. The upgraded platform, Sijilat 3.0, also has features that allow investors to manage their businesses from anywhere in the world.
Sijilat is an integrated electronic portal that aims to provide a commercial investment environment that attracts investors, facilitates the establishment of commercial projects, and completes any requirements related to commercial activities.
The details of the updated platform were announced by Industry and Commerce Minister Abdullah Adel Fakhro at a press conference where he officially launched Sijilat 3.0 in cooperation with the Information and e-Government Authority (iGA), Bahrain Post, and Cisco. The press conference was held at the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) headquarters in Sanabis.
“The launch of Sijilat 3.0 aims to further develop and improve the quality of services provided by the Industry and Commerce Ministry, by implementing the latest technologies that enable investors to manage their businesses easily and from anywhere in the world,” said Mr Fakhro. “Improvements in the new system update include a collection of new e-services, which facilitate and reduce steps to access services by 60pc. The improved system uses modern programming techniques that suit the format of various devices, in addition to other new services.”
Among the notable services is the “automated guide,” an interactive tool and a proactive step that enables investors to access everything they need to establish their business and determine the appropriate structure of the commercial registration (CR) or its activity before starting it. It also provides the service of printing certificates for the CR, which allows businessmen and investors to obtain certificates and CR data through Sijilat, in addition to providing and improving 10 services for CR holders. Sijilat 3.0 also has a “Dashboard” to display all commercial records, enabling investors to complete many transactions such as submitting a request for a new registration, deleting records, renewing and searching for active records, searching for commercial activities, renewing CRs without a license, changing addresses, as well as adding a help page and a feature to inquire about transactions.
Also present at the press conference were BCCI Chairman Samir Abdullah Nass, iGA chief executive Mohammed Al Qaed, iGA deputy chief executive Dr Zakaria Ahmed Al Khaja, and Industry and Commerce Ministry Commercial Registration and Companies Assistant UnderSecretary Nibras Mohammed Ali Talib.
“Increasing the volume of commercial and investment activities in Bahrain through facilitating the establishment procedures for investors and developing them continuously supports the BCCI’s objectives and commitment to providing the business environment with all means to create a wellrounded investment environment,” said Mr Nass.
Meanwhile, Mr Al Qaed stressed that continuing to develop Sijilat affirms the government’s belief in its significant role as one of the factors that provide a conducive environment for various activities and businesses of the private sector and contributes to attracting Bahraini, Gulf, and international investors. He appreciated all the teams that worked on improving the new Sijilat system to include the new integrated and supportive electronic features and services that support the commercial sector and attract investors.
“The iGA, under the support of Interior Minister General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, is continuing to develop Sijilat in partnership with the Industry and Commerce Ministry and other concerned entities and will continue the process of digital transformation of government services and systems.”
The first version of Sijilat was launched in 2015 under the name ‘commercial registration’, making Bahrain the first country in the region to provide such a service. The version provided an e-link with commercial record licensees and a manual on the use of various Sijilat services, as well as adding the services of commercial companies, the most important ofwhich was issuing a CR.
In 2016, Sijilat 2 was launched, featuring the service of issuing a CR without a license within 93 seconds only, in addition to including the National Classification of Economic Activities (ISIC4).