UN Bahrain discusses its new partnership strategy with Government and Private Sector partners

The United Nations in Bahrain convened this week two-day, high-level consultation workshops with representatives of Bahrain’s public and private sectors to advance a more coherent, streamlined, and results-driven approach to partnerships under the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2025–2029.

Facilitated by the Office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Bahrain, the workshops brought together United Nations officials, government representatives, and private-sector partners, including members of chambers of commerce, and academics. The consultations marked a major step towards a new UN Bahrain–Public Sector–Private Sector Partnership Strategy for 2026–2029 and strengthening institutional alignment around partnership engagement.

The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Bahrain, Khaled El Mekwad, highlighted the strong potential of UN-Bahrain collaboration, through more structured and strategic partnerships, to accelerate progress on shared priorities, including achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

He noted that the objective is “to make partnerships easier to do, faster to launch, and better aligned with national development priorities,” emphasising that partnerships are not only about funding, but about mobilising Bahrain’s conducive ecosystem of technological expertise, innovation, data solutions, and co-financing models.

“The UNSDCF 2025–2029 provides a strategic framework that aligns United Nations support with the Kingdom of Bahrain's development priorities, including Bahrain Economic Vision 2030, while emphasising results, innovation and impact,” said Hatem Abdelhameed Hatem, Head of International Organisations at Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He highlighted “the importance of a clear and structured triangular model that brings together the Government, the United Nations and the Private Sector to translate priorities into concrete initiatives, investments and scalable impact.”

Participants discussed proposals of effective pathways for UN–Private Sector Partnership, a triangular UN–Government–Private Sector model designed to bring greater clarity to roles, coordination mechanisms, and approval processes.

They jointly reviewed key findings of the new UN Bahrain partnership strategy, examined opportunities in SDG-aligned investment, and discussed practical engagement modalities to strengthen institutional coherence.

Discussions included priority areas of United Nations- Bahrain partnership, including manufacturing, food security, logistics and connectivity; digital transformation and innovation- FinTech, AI and ICT; clean and renewable energy transition; vocational education, health services, sustainable tourism and hospitality innovation; gender and disability inclusion.