“Finance”: More than 47 thousand Bahrainis work in “small and medium enterprises”

Right-hand shape

Women drive ownership, 7% more than men.

85,700 small and medium enterprises constitute 93.4% of the market in 2025. 5% growth in the number of small enterprises to 85,700 enterprises. 75.3% jump in “SME” exports to 112 million dinars. “Small and medium” exports rise to 112 million dinars in 2025. 34.4% of “small and medium enterprises” owned by women. 52.3 million dinars. Government awards to “small and medium sized” companies 247 government awards support “small and medium sized” companies with 52.3 million dinars The industry accounts for 82.5% of “small and medium sized” exports America tops the destinations for “small and medium sized” exports with 24.8 million dinars

The report of the Ministry of Finance and National Economy issued yesterday revealed that more than 47,000 Bahrainis were employed in small and medium enterprises until the end of last year, while women are more prominent in the ownership of these enterprises than men, with a difference of 7%.

The report stated, according to the statistics of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Council, that these institutions constituted 93.4% of the total number of institutions in the Kingdom of Bahrain during the year 2025, with a total of 85,700 institutions, recording a growth of 5.0% compared to the year 2024. The institutions owned by Bahrainis constituted 75.6% of the total number of small and medium enterprises, 34.4% were owned by women, and 27.6% were owned by men. By the youth category, small and medium enterprises also contributed to employing 47,338 Bahrainis until the end of the year 2025, enhancing its role in supporting social and economic stability.

On the other hand, government procurement constitutes one of the effective mechanisms to support small and medium enterprises, as the Tenders and Auctions Board launched in 2019 an initiative dedicated to enhancing local demand for the products and services of these enterprises.

According to published Bahrain export statistics, the total value of exports of goods and services to small and medium enterprises has increased to reach about 112.0 million Bahraini dinars in the year 2025, compared to 63.9 million Bahraini dinars in 2024, achieving a remarkable growth of 75.3% on an annual basis.

At the level of economic sectors, the manufacturing sector topped the list of sectors contributing to exports, accounting for 82.5% of total exports, followed by the wholesale and retail trade sector with 6.1%, then the professional, scientific and technical activities sector with 5.7%.

Regarding export destinations, the United States of America came at the top of the importing markets in terms of value during the year 2025, with exports amounting to about 24.8 million dinars, followed by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with a value of 22.9 million dinars, then the Republic of India with a value of 13.3 million dinars.

This initiative has yielded tangible results until the end of the year 2025, as the value of awards to small and medium enterprises reached approximately 52.3 million Bahraini dinars distributed over 247 awards, which supports this sector and constitutes an important incentive for its growth and expansion.