Al Khayyat: The urban guide for the “Capital” will be issued soon

Zahraa Habib

• – Bahrain is completely free of unplanned areas, with 9,000 properties provided
• – Launching “Planning Consultations” in cooperation with “Municipalities” and “E-Government”
• – Providing 10 waterfront sites and allocating 300 berths in Tubli Bay
• – There is no street in the Bahrain plan that is less than 20 metres

The CEO of the Urban Planning and Development Authority, Ahmed Al-Khayyat, confirmed that all areas of Bahrain have been planned and classified, which has provided about 9,000 properties of various sizes and classifications. He revealed that work is underway on the strategic structural plan for 2050, while the first phase has been completed, and work is being done on the guide for the capital, “Manama,” and it is scheduled to be issued soon. Al-Khayyat said that the project to modify the landfill line of the Tubli Bay Reserve did not previously have a detailed plan, and 10 sites were provided for waterfronts, 300 marinas were allocated as fishing harbours, areas for mangrove trees, and lands overlooking the sea (governmental or private) are ready for development. He added that a new service, “Planning Consultations,” was launched, in cooperation with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and E-Government, and the service contributed to reducing building permit applications that were rejected or delayed, which constitutes an important achievement for investors and citizens.

He pointed out the development of all legislation related to organization, infrastructure, and building facades with broad community participation, through consulting the Bahrain Society of Engineers, consulting offices, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Shura Council, in addition to polling citizens’ opinions, which confirms that legislation is dynamic and changes based on market needs and is subject to comprehensive and periodic reviews.

This came in a paper presented by Al-Khayyat in one of the dialogue sessions organized last Wednesday on the sidelines of the “Cityscape” Bahrain 2025 exhibition held at the Bahrain International Exhibition Centre, in which he discussed strategies and achievements in the field of urban planning and organizational development in Bahrain, with a focus on urban expansion, facilitating procedures, engaging the community, and meeting future needs.

Al-Khayyat touched on the project of issuing the new “heritage” urban guide in Muharraq, while working on the guide for the capital, “Manama,” which is scheduled to be issued soon, along with setting controls for parking in Bahrain in an integrated manner, through regulatory standards and requirements in open spaces that differ from closed areas, to give developers and investors a greater opportunity to have less space in their private parking lots, and these controls received great acceptance from developers.

He mentioned the planning platform (the digital platform), which was launched in 2021 to provide 16 services, and contributed to reducing the time of planning requests by more than 80%, and reduced the time of internal consulting services from 10 days to 5 days, while accelerating the process of reclassifying and dividing lands. Al-Khayyat listed the stages of legislative and administrative development in Bahrain, to develop urban planning in the Kingdom of Bahrain:

Before 1970: Planning was based on a system of simple forms for land development, which were considered a building permit for a project. 1970: The first law was issued to organize and develop land in Bahrain. 1994: The first law on urban planning was issued. 2008: Bahrain became the first country in the Arabian Gulf to issue a national strategic structural plan.

He explained that the structural plan constitutes a road map that includes ten main strategies for the Kingdom, which include housing, economy, transportation, environment, afforestation, and others.

He pointed out that work is underway on the strategic structural plan for 2050, not to mention that the first phase of updating the strategic plan and reviewing the ten strategies has been completed, most of which have been worked on and achieved varying percentages ranging from 70 to 90%, and it is considered a government achievement in all its agencies.

Al-Khayyat stated that Bahrain is based on planning thinking based on accurate and updated information from geographic information systems (GIS) and urban data, and aims to achieve urban balance between governorates and cities, and social and economic balance, which is one of the secrets of successful planning in the Kingdom.

He pointed to the role of planning in preserving the environment and clean, renewable energy, and enhancing the plant sector, including planting mangrove trees for their role in supporting aquatic life and coasts, and mitigating climate change, not to mention preserving urban heritage and reviving heritage cities, by making cities a tourist attraction and providing investment opportunities in them, in addition to returning citizens to their residential neighborhoods to give these cities a real spirit.

City planning also focuses on people and place in an integrated manner, while ensuring the proximity of vital facilities and services to each other, noting that the streets of residential areas have been expanded to 20 metres, from 10 to 15 metres. Today, there is no street in the Bahrain plan that is less than 20 metres, and the provision of sufficient parking lots and pedestrian paths, designated for bicycles, and in agricultural and rural areas, paths designated for practicing horse riding have been provided.

Al-Khayyat said, “The planning of all unplanned areas in Bahrain, which constitute about 10% of the Kingdom’s area, has been completed. This is an achievement that represents efforts that have lasted 70 years. Bahrain no longer includes unplanned or unclassified areas, and this was done at the highest standards.” He added: These newly planned areas provided approximately 9,000 properties of various sizes and uses (residential, educational, commercial, and service).