Bahrain

The Ministry of Education in Bahrain administers the government's educational institutions and supervises private educational institutions in the country. The organization consists of the Minister of Education, the Under-secretary, and the Assistant Undersecretaries, who oversee the following directorates: Educational Services and Private Education, General and Technical Education, Financial and Administrative Affairs, Curricula and Training, and Educational Planning and Information. The development of Bahrain's human resources potential is a high priority: the Ministry aims to develop Bahrain's services and industrial sectors to compensate for decreases in oil revenues. Under the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the Training Promotions Office is working to establish an internationally accredited national vocational qualification system, modeled after the British system. Aligning the industrial and services sectors with the national education system is a key component of this strategy. The government is pursuing ambitious technological agendas, as exemplified by the introduction of Internet-based teaching and learning initiatives in government schools. In 1998 the government's investment in education totaled BD (Bahraini Dinars) 82 million (about US$21.8 million).

In 1999 Dr. Hamad Ali Al Sulayti, formerly Director of Bahrain's Educational Planning and Cultural Affairs under the Ministry of Education, and previously the Acting Secretary General of the Bahraini Center for Studies and Research, outlined in a cutting-edge report some of the common challenges faced by GCC countries in reforming and developing their educational systems. This report, delivered at an educational conference in Abu Dhabi, underlined the importance of aligning the education sectors of Gulf countries with actual labor market needs so as to ensure greater economic productivity, workforce efficiency, and social stability. Bahrain has taken the lead in meeting such challenges, and as an educational pioneer can draw on its own experience of facing the early necessity for economic diversification. Important requirements for GCC countries suggested by educational research include curriculum reform, employer involvement, and a higher level of quality assurance through systems of external accountability—areas in which Bahrain already has a head start.