An Interview with the team managing Bahrain Business Incubator Center.
When did BBIC start in Bahrain ?
BBIC was established in 2002 as the first Business Incubator in the GCC region.
What is the main role for BBIC ?
Bahrain Development Bank’s (BDB) objective as the main SME’s funding institute in the Kingdom of Bahrain is the economic development of the country, especially the diversification of the economy and creation of jobs. Establishment of Bahrain Business Incubator Centre (BBIC) is intended to further these objectives. BBIC is initiated and financed by BDB. As a pioneering project, which is the first of its kind in Bahrain and the GCC. BBIC main mission is to support the small and medium business activity in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
What services does the BBIC offer ?
BBIC offers many services including Business Advisory, Space with subsidized rent, Financial linkage, Security and many other shared facilities
What’s the size of the office and industrial spaces offered by BBIC ?
The offered offices range from 10 m2 to 45 m2. The workshops range between 80 m2 to 1400 m2.
How can a new startup apply to BBIC and are there any prerequisites or requirements?
Candidates should fill the application form and arrange for a meeting with the management team to present the idea of the business and discuss the business plan and all other related business issues.
For how long can a company stay at BBIC?
The Incubation Period is 3 years where the business should be able to graduate and settle in the market.
What is the capacity of BBIC today and how much occupancy do you have ?
The current total capacity of BBIC is 138 units, currently the occupancy rate is more than 90 %.
How many companies benefited from BBIC since the center started?
The total number of beneficiaries is around 225 companies.
What are the main sectors BBIC attracts and is there a trend of growth in certain sectors ?
The current incubated companies are varying between light manufacturing of electronic devices and components, boats, cars, garments, industrial mechanical parts, paper products, aluminum products, electrical products and food processing.
Also BBIC is incubating businesses in the service industry such as Marine services, event management services, IT consultancy, Websites development, social media services, business consultancy, coaching, agricultural service, nursering, graphic design, media production, and other industrial services.
What are the future plans of BBIC ?
BBIC is expanding to increase the geographic coverage and increase the number of incubators in the kingdom. Currently BBIC is establishing new incubators that are sector specific incubators targeting specific client segments like a specialized incubator to serve the women owned businesses, this project is a joint project with the Higher Supreme counsel for Women, also BBIC is establishing an incubator at the University of Bahrain as a joint project between the incubator and the university. This incubator will be targeting knowledge based business and technology commercialization. There are also plans to establish more incubators which are under planning.