Spent a few days in wonderful Bahrain just last week and came back in time for the anniversary bash of C! Magazine last Monday.
Yes, I was there for the very prestigious Gulf Air Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, a must-see for all F1 fans for on-site exhilarating action and the chance to see today’s racing icons in the flesh. I will leave the details and highlights of qualifying and race days for my Motoring Today column next week. Suffice it say that I lived it up at the Paddock Club hospitality suite at the track where food galore was served, and a well-trained coterie of waiters filled up your champagne glass without having to ask. All day. And I chomped alternately on lobster and tender lamb while I watched the Formula racing cars as colorful as the crowd that converged at the track that day trying to out do each other in the tricky chicanes and hairpins. Awesome action.
What better way to fly to the Middle East than Bahrain’s flagship carrier, Gulf Air, and so I did. Needless to say, I was pampered in the sky. The seats were very comfortable (even those in the economy class said so!), there was so much leg space that the 10-hour flight just seemed to happen, what with the excellent in-flight movies and the carefully-planned menus that their much-touted ‘Chefs in the Sky’ prepared for us. Gulf Air has done the extra mile to be the carrier of choice not only to this part of the world but to their other destinations in Europe, US, Asia and Africa as well. That’s why Gulf Air is also known as the ambassador of the kingdom. I hear our OFWs have been enjoying their perks for sometime now.
This was my 3rd or 4th visit to this very cosmopolitan state, spaced a few years in-between. This most recent one, I saw a total transformation of Bahrain’s landscape. Towering skyscrapers filled up the skyline, and these buildings have been gobbling up the vast lands, idle for so many years, in this state. People can no longer say that Bahrain’s current economic boom is solely oil-driven, because it has been an important business center in recent years. It has been touted as the gateway to Europe, and most people make Bahrain a customary stop because of the great shopping they offer there. All the latest branded wear, from clothes to shoes to perfumes perk up the display windows along the shopping district, and because they’re tax free, seasoned travelers know that this is the route to take when going to Europe.
The modernization of Bahrain itself is short of phenomenal, given the relatively short time frame. The government itself has been the driving force behind it. Their local newspapers report that owners of commercial properties are being offered a chance to buy adjacent lands through their Municipalities and Agriculture Ministry and these lands cannot be used for any other purpose. An additional 20-percent discount will be given during actual settlement. Incentives like that are hard to ignore if you’re a serious, driven businessman, and in a place that is fast emerging as a vital link in the region.
Five of the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have their currencies pegged to the US dollar, but while the United States is fighting tooth and nail to fight inflation, GCC is enjoying an unprecedented boom because of high oil revenues. They have wisely applied most of their excess funds to expanding their port capacity, infrastructure development, housing, and airport capacity. The recent persistent reports of inflation in these states are due mainly to excessive day-to-day spending but these states are awash with cash, now more than ever.
Like Malaysia, Bahrain has seen the incontrovertible benefits that hosting world-famous sports events “inflict” on the host country. Like Malaysia, which is now self-reliant on its fuel needs, Bahrain built its own F-1 circuit and had it counted in among the elite countries hosting F-1 races. Now, motor sport is rapidly emerging as one of the more lucrative businesses in Bahrain, even touted as an economic pillar in the economy of the region.
Last year’s figures cited $12 billion as the size of this emerging industry in the region which counts Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Saudi Arabia as movers. Bahrain was the first country in the Gulf area to host the F1 Grand Prix in 2004, and since then has been looked up to as a model by its neighboring states. Proof of the importance they place on motor sports as big business is the fact that they have such a thing as Motorsports Business Forum, an annual affair now attended by Aston Martin (chairman David Richards attended this year’s forum), F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone and a host of others.
It was indeed a strategic decision that Bahrain embarked on when it decided to build a track and host the F1 Grand Prix four years ago. They obviously realized that they would need a world-class infrastructure in sports and tourism if they wish to have Bahrain as the destination of choice, not only for foreign investors but for tourists as well. The impact on its economy caused a concentric circles effect — it created jobs for the locals, the locals benefited from the transfer of expertise particularly in engineering, the hospitality aspect of tourism was developed and utterly enhanced, and Bahrain was placed in the elite and chic map of F-1. It proved what my old friend Pocholo Ramirez said about Grand Prix races — that they are indeed a very valuable tool for commerce for any country that opens its doors, builds a permanent and world-class track to host the events on a regular basis. It was reported that every key decision-maker in the Middle East business community was in Bahrain for the 2008 F1 Grand Prix. 2007 was a banner year for them, with over 900,000 people attending the sporting event. This year, they broke that record.
Perhaps, it is due in part to the superiority of the track. The legendary Jackie Stewart of F1 racing called it a “technological oasis” in 2004, a “futuristic circuit” that has everything to make the drivers and team members happy. “It cannot get any closer to being perfect”, he said. Small wonder why they were awarded the Best Organized Grand Prix that same year.
To be sure, building a track such as the one does not cost a pittance. They reportedly spent $150 million back in 2004 to build it, but did you know that in three years they recovered their initial investment fully, and before they reached the fourth year, they earned revenues four times the initial investment? For 2007 alone, the unofficial income, I heard, is topping $1 billion.
Even the rest of the state has been in tip-top shape. As they have been setting the pace for the rest of the region, the Bahrain International Airport is likewise now a benchmark for the region. It has all the world-class amenities of airlines and more — accommodation facilities, catering services and other relevant support systems, making it one of the busiest hereabout, handling 230 flights a day. It has adopted a firm “open skies” policy in order to develop new airline services, and is also offering new incentives to entice more carriers to serve Bahrain like discounts on landing fees, free parking for the first two hours, reduction on hotel accommodation for crew, and the “best fuel prices in the region.” Even now, they are already talking of expansions and extensions in this airport to accommodate the expected surge of visitors.
The local operations of Gulf Air have country general manager Mr. Roberto “Bobby” Hukom at the reins. After a few years of challenging times, Bobby was able to help tremendously in making Gulf Air the airline of choice of many OFWs as well as local ‘jetsetters’ who decide some leisure time and explore business opportunities in that remarkable Gulf State.
Wonderful Bahrain indeed.
Mabuhay! Be proud to be a Filipino.
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