ICT

With developed ICT infrastructure, high penetration rates, a tech-savvy population and a business-friendly ecosystem, Bahrain has much to offer investors. The kingdom’s geographically and demographically compact market provides an ideal sandbox for tech companies and start-ups to experiment and roll out pilot programmes, giving it a well-established research and development pedigree. Telecommunications companies in Bahrain face many of the same challenges as providers in other countries, with a decline in demand for voice services, accelerating data consumption and higher investment costs, particularly as infrastructure spending is disproportionately allocated to the rollout of the 5G network. Nevertheless, tech firms and start-ups will continue to benefit from the kingdom’s relative ease of doing business and government support in the form of funding, accelerators and incubators. This chapter contains an interview with Mikkel Vinter, CEO, Batelco.