The Herritage & Culture
 Bahrain's long history is closely interwoven with the sea and it is therefore not surprising that its traditions have a distinctly maritime flavour, ranging as they do from songs and dances associated with pearling and fishing to the skills of boat building and sailing. Bahrain is also part of the regional tribal culture involving crafts, stories, poetry, song and dance. Today many of the latter are still practiced on special occasions while practical art forms such as cloth weaving, pottery, and basketry are kept alive, often with various forms of government support. Traditional carpentry is often used to adorn modern buildings while embroidery is highly valued in dress making and for home decorations. Bahrain's rich heritage is nurtured and protected by the Bahrain government, which tackles programmes through a number of organisations.
The Ministry of Cabinet Affairs and Information has relied upon a practical strategy in tackling cultural issues, that views culture as a basic and fundamental dimension in the process of achieving comprehensive development at all socio-economic and political levels. Culture is also in the front-line of defence aimed at confronting any malicious intentions or actions that seek to jeopardise the country's national achievements. In addition to that it is considered to be an impetus which will give momentum to human development.
In order to effectively achieve its priorities the Ministry formulated a programme which includes the following objectives: (a) to maintain and preserve heritage and to give due respect to preservation of archaeological sites since they reflect the history and civilisation of the country; (b) to encourage the artistic and intellectual movement by caring for and helping artists to publish and circulate their works and to protect their intellectual property rights; (c) to encourage and support Bahraini journalists and media staff and provide them the opportunity to participate in training and qualifying courses; and (d) to develop and modernise the mass media and its tools in order to cope with the overwhelming progress taking place in this field.
The government has also made a commitment to place special emphasis on reflecting Bahrain's positive image at all levels. This includes promotion of Bahrain as a tourist destination and as a centre for exhibitions and conferences.
Bahrain is considered to be a pioneer country in press and printing. The first newspape published in Bahrain was launched in 1939 and was called Bahrain News. The Bahrain Daily News appeared a few years later together with some weekly magazines. The Ministry of Information Printing House was launched in 1978 to meet printing needs of the other ministries and government institutions and particularly to print the Official Gazette and Bahrain Cultural Magazine and This is Bahrain magazine.
Radio Bahrain is the oldest of its kind in the Gulf region, having been originally launched in 1941 during the Second World War. It was closed in 1945 but relaunched in July 1955, initially with four hours broadcasting a day. In the 1960s it extended its programming and in 1981 moved into new premises. In the early 1990s Radio Bahrain commenced 24 hour broadcasting and introduced two short-wave transmission channels.
Bahrain Television started operating in 1973, initially with five hours of programming each day. In October 1996 Bahrain Satellite Broadcasting was introduced.
In January 1993 Bahrain Radio and Bahrain Television merged to form a single corporate entity. The new broadcasting authority, established under an Emiri decree, aims at achieving the highest standards of transmission utilising the latest information technology, within the guidelines of state policy.
Apart from the state policy towards encouraging the Bahraini cultural movement at all levels, the government established the National Council for Culture and Arts. Simultaneously, a high council for tourism was established in order to formulate plans and programmes to attract tourists. This council is responsible also for developing and improving tourism infrastructures and its activities, in addition to promoting Bahraini heritage and preserving the folkloric sites.
In 1997 Bahrain was placed in second in a list of the most attractive tourist locations in the Middle East and first as the most promising destination at the Hong Kong tourism exhibition.
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