Manama: The Supreme Council for Women (SCW), in partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB), Bahrain Bourse, the Labour Fund (Tamkeen), and the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance (BIBF), recently organized an awareness session focused on the significance of Bahraini women serving on the boards of public shareholding companies.
According to Bahrain News Agency, the event, attended by Lulwa bint Saleh Al Awadhi, Secretary General of the SCW, aimed to motivate qualified women to pursue board positions and elucidate the legal, regulatory, and training support available to them. Al Awadhi conveyed the regards of Her Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa and emphasized the collaborative efforts with participating organizations to implement the directive of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa. The directive seeks to ensure women's representation on the boards of Bahrain Bourse-listed public shareholding companies and necessitates the disclosure of board membership by gender in annual reports.
Al Awadhi highlighted that the session is part of the "Women on Boards" programme under the National Plan for the Advancement of Bahraini Women (2025-2026), which seeks to bolster women's representation on company boards. The programme encourages women to stand for elections, raises awareness about nomination requirements, showcases successful Bahraini women board members, and promotes the legal framework and available training opportunities. Al Awadhi noted that women held 7% of board seats at Bahrain Bourse-listed companies in 2023, and 27 women, accounting for 22.3% of all candidates, participated in the April 2026 board elections, illustrating an increasing interest among Bahraini women in leadership roles and the need for further training.
The Ministry of Industry and Commerce reviewed Decree No. (91) of 2022, amending certain provisions of the Corporate Governance Code issued under Decree No. (19) of 2018. This decree, introduced through collaboration between the SCW, the ministry, and relevant authorities, mandates companies to consider women's representation when forming their boards and to disclose board membership statistics by gender in their annual corporate governance reports. The ministry highlighted these measures as pivotal in enhancing corporate governance, competitiveness, and contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and the National Plan for the Advancement of Bahraini Women.
The Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry praised its ongoing partnership with the SCW in supporting Bahraini women's advancement and their role in the business sector. The chamber commended the council's initiatives aimed at increasing women's representation on company boards and reiterated its support for businesswomen and women entrepreneurs, emphasizing women's critical role in economic development.
The CBB reviewed the regulatory framework supporting increased women's representation on the boards of public shareholding companies, including amendments to governance rules that require considering women's representation and disclosing annual board membership statistics by gender. Bahrain Bourse presented the legal requirements for nomination and highlighted statistical data showing a rising trend in women's participation in nominations and election wins from 2017 to 2026.
BIBF and Tamkeen reviewed the available training and development programmes, including BIBF's "Women on Boards" programme, aimed at preparing executive leaders for board membership. The session also featured the success story of Tala Fakhro, a board member of APM Terminals Bahrain, as an inspiring example of Bahraini women's representation on boards.
The session concluded with the SCW Secretary General directing the implementation of a training programme to prepare qualified women seeking board membership, with a strong interest in initial registration reflecting Bahraini women's desire to enhance their readiness for company board positions. The session is part of the "Women on Boards of Public Shareholding Companies" programme under the National Plan for the Advancement of Bahraini Women (2025-2026), aiming to increase women's participation in boards and strengthen governance and institutional performance.