BATOOL GHAITH (ABU DHABI)
The UAE and Bahrain share strong bilateral relations rooted in history and a common vision of sustainable development for their peoples. Cooperation across key sectors, from economy to politics and culture, continues to deepen and expand through the years.
As Bahrain marks its National Day today, the UAE stands among its steadfast partners, reaffirming its commitment to advancing relations toward greater heights.
Economically, UAE-Bahrain ties are marked by robust growth in recent years. In 2024, UAE data placed bilateral non-oil trade at Dh33.9 billion (around $9.2 billion), up 23% from 2023 figures.
Between 2015 and 2024, trade between the two countries grew at an average annual rate of 11% - the fastest among the UAE's partners in the Gulf region.
Overall, the UAE is the Kingdom's second-largest trading partner globally, comprising 10.4% of its total worldwide trade, as confirmed by Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Foreign Trade, in a recent report.
Beyond merchandise trade, the two countries are exploring new drivers of investment and industrial development. Within the Industrial Partnership for Sustainable Economic Growth, launched by the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and Jordan, companies signed major industrial agreements in 2023 covering sectors such as food, metals, chemicals and pharmaceuticals.
A UAE–Bahrain Joint Ministerial Committee, which held its 12th session in November 2024, oversees cooperation across priority sectors and follows up on implementation of agreements.
The two countries are also working closely to strengthen coordinated and effective responses to financial crime. In November, they signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance cooperation in combatting money laundering and terrorist financing, in line with their upcoming joint presidency of the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF) in 2026.
National Talent Development
Education and human-capital development feature prominently in UAE-Bahrain coordination.
In 2024, the two sides signed a memorandum on training and developing government competencies between Abu Dhabi School of Government and Bahrain's Institute of Public Administration, underlining a shared focus on modernising public sectors and sharing governance experience.
Youth and sports have become a particularly dynamic area of cooperation. The two states inked a sports-cooperation MoU in 2024, focused on exchanging expertise, organising joint training camps and events, and developing youth sports programmes. Embassies and sports councils on both sides regularly host joint sports days and tournaments, using sport to strengthen people-to-people bonds.
From shared beginnings more than half a century ago to expanding economic and cultural ties today, the UAE and Bahrain have developed a relationship grounded in continuity and future-oriented cooperation.