The government has referred to the House of Representatives a new bill to regulate the electricity and water sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain, a step that appears to be an administrative, but it is essentially a comprehensive reformulation of a vital sector that affects the daily life of the citizen and represents a basic pillar of the national economy. The project requires the abolition of the Electricity and Water Authority and the transformation of its tasks into a national company, and the establishment of an independent organization that enjoys wide powers to follow up on operators and ensure the stability and sustainability of services, With the abolition of the law issued in 1996 and the consequent decrees, to begin a new stage that responds to the requirements of the times.
This transformation is in line with the Bahrain Economic Strategy 2030, which is based on the principles of competitiveness, justice and sustainability, so the sector opened to private companies licensed for employment and development represents an entry point to enhance the partnership between the public and private sectors, and to attract international investments and experience Dirham after a partial liberation of the sector, while Saudi Arabia raised the efficiency of electrical generation by more than 20% in five years.
Bahrain realizes that the demand for electricity and water is increasing at rates that may reach 6% annually, and that the continued population and economic growth requires higher flexibility in managing the sector, away from the traditional bureaucracy, and here the role of the independent organizational body is highlighted as a guarantor of the stability of services, a sergeant to the performance of companies, and a barrier to any monopolistic practices that may harm the citizen.
While some may be apprehended from the repercussions of this shift on prices or the possibility of complete privatization, the real guarantee lies in the strength and independence of the organizational authority, but this step would open new horizons for the citizen, whether by improving the quality of service, or enhancing transparency in electricity and water pricing, or creating job opportunities in the areas of operation, maintenance and renewable energy, to reflect economic reforms directly on the daily life of families Bahraini.
The new draft law is not limited to amending legislative texts or redistributing powers, but rather a clear announcement of the transfer of Bahrain from the stage of reassuring consumption to the stage of conscious production, and from the logic of traditional administration to the philosophy of investment in the future, the state here not only seeks to secure the needs of electricity and water, but it establishes an economic and intellectual infrastructure capable of absorbing the requirements of tomorrow, and in this context the citizen remains the goal and the means together It does not make sense for any reform if it is not translated in light that shines in his home, a drop of water that tells his day, or a job opportunity that opens the way for his children, is a state project that sees electricity and water more than basic services, but rather an entry into sustainable development, and an economic vision that celebrates the present and prepares for the future.
* Media and academic researcher
