10-year strategy aims to put Bahrain on the global HE map

Bahrain is stepping up efforts to position itself as a regional and global hub for international students and academic investment with a new 10-year strategy aimed at driving research and innovation, and boosting the higher education sector’s quality, competitiveness, global visibility and reach.

The National Strategy for Higher Education and Scientific Research (2026 to 2036) was outlined by the Minister of Education and Higher Education Council Board of Trustees Chairperson Dr Mohammed Bin Mubarak Juma on 9 April .

Juma said: “Our policies are now focused on international visibility, academic partnerships, quality assurance and creating an environment that attracts students and institutions from around the world.”

“Our goal is clear – to make Bahrain a recognised name on the global higher education map,” he added.

Prepared by the Higher Education Council in cooperation with UK-based Times Higher Education consultancy, the strategy focuses on strengthening Bahrain’s presence in international university rankings and expanding cross-border academic cooperation by enhancing international visibility, academic partnerships, quality assurance and creating an environment that attracts students and institutions from around the world.

The strategy is a tool to align higher education outcomes with the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030 to produce graduates with the skills required for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Global standards index

It includes several initiatives, such as the Global Standards Index (GSI), which will serve as a framework to build a globally competitive academic system, ensuring local degrees meet international standards along with encouraging universities in Bahrain to improve their positions in global rankings, such as the QS World University Rankings and Times Higher Education ranking.

To achieve that, the Higher Education Council will use three main benchmarks to measure progress – institutional and programme quality, scientific research and innovation, and internationalisation and academic mobility.

To ensure that Bahrain’s higher education system is becoming more competitive and globally attractive, indicators include the number of accredited institutions, global ranking placements, growth in Scopus-indexed research publications, percentage of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students, number of foreign academic programmes hosted in Bahrain, and the proportion of international students.

Quality assurance is also a cornerstone of the strategy. To ensure that no institution or programme operates without meeting internationally benchmarked standards, the Higher Education Council will link licensing and accreditation to performance reviews conducted in co-operation with the Education and Training Quality Authority and the National Qualifications Framework.

A major pillar of the strategy is the Bahrain Transnational Education (TNE) Hub, which aims to attract foreign universities and programmes to operate from Bahrain, turning the kingdom into a host platform for global academic offerings.

This initiative focuses on expanding collaborations with recognised global educational institutions to establish a regional presence in Bahrain as well as boosting the quality of education and aligning it with labour market needs, supporting a knowledge-based economy.

The TNE hub focuses on specialised programmes in areas like artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity, often developed alongside global partners.

Internationalisation

The strategy also includes a “Study in Bahrain” campaign aimed at attracting top-tier international students by highlighting the kingdom's safety and high-quality education options.

Bahrain has four foreign international campuses, namely: Ireland’s Royal College of Surgeons; the Philippines’ AMA International University; Sri Lanka’s Postgraduate Institute of Management affiliated with the University of Sri Jayewardenepura; and the British University of Bahrain (a partnership with the University of Salford), according to the April 2026 Branch Campus Listing prepared by the University of Miami’s Cross-Border Education Research Team (C-BERT ).

Based on an academic partnership with the Vellore Institute of Technology in India, Bahrain will also have a new university called “Capital University” that will open its doors in September.

It will focus on bachelor degree programmes in computer science, artificial intelligence, and robotics, in addition to offering a specialisation in applied psychology, which is currently unavailable in Bahrain, as well as business administration programmes at masters level.

Diversification of economy

Professor Jean-Pierre El Asmar, academic vice-president of the Royal University for Women in Bahrain, told University World News implementation of the 10-year strategy will result in important benefits for the Kingdom of Bahrain.

It would help to diversify Bahrain’s economy from an oil-reliant one to one that is based on knowledge through enhanced education, he said. It would also “align academic output with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the requirements of the industrial revolution, thereby transforming the higher education sector into a primary driver of human capital that directly fuels innovation and high-tech industries,” El Asmar said.

“By institutionalising the Global Standards Index and by prioritising QS and THE rankings, the Kingdom of Bahrain will elevate its local education to a global level, enhancing, therefore, the higher education level and prestige of Bahraini degrees and allowing international mobility of Bahraini students,” he said.

El Asmar said the TNE Hub would increase regional competitiveness among the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council and would “position the Kingdom of Bahrain as a strategic bridge between Eastern and Western academic models, while fostering a unique ecosystem for specialised studies in AI and cybersecurity”.

He said successful implementation of the strategy would involve integration of the TNE Hub with industry by promoting public-private partnerships to allow experiential learning approaches and the creation of living laboratories where students solve real-time challenges.

He also pointed to the need for more simplified visa processes for students, affordable student accommodation, and a vibrant and multicultural environment that was attractive to international youth.

“Improving Scopus-indexed publications by securing funds for early-career researchers coupled with incentives for cross-border collaboration between faculty and global partner institutions will boost research output and guarantee its sustainability,” Asmar added.

Nick Davis, vice-president of global sales at Times Higher Education, told University World News there were three key areas to “get right”: alignment, tracking and resourcing.

He said the Times Higher Education saw significant buy-in from government, sector bodies, university leadership and the private sector.

“It is essential to a successful implementation that this alignment cascades throughout each institution," Davis said. “Tracking performance and monitoring key performance indicators by accessing sector-wide data and implementing suitable reporting is crucial to keep such an extensive strategy on track,” he added.

“Finally, resourcing will be key. There are some ambitious targets, particularly in the research space. Adequately funding these areas will make or break the strategy,” he noted.

Global recognition

Bahrain’s leading universities are increasingly being recognised in global rankings.

According to the 2026 QS World University Ranking, three Bahraini institutions are ranked among the world's best, with the Applied Science University leading at #613, followed by Ahlia University (#801-850) and the University of Bahrain (#951-1000).

Bahrain has six universities in the overall Times Higher Education World University Rankings. The highest-ranking university here is the Arabian Gulf University, which is ranked at 401-500.

Bahrain is a moderate performer in terms of its knowledge infrastructure, ranking 56th out of 133 countries in the Global Knowledge Index (GKI) 2023, which measures knowledge performance worldwide using seven main sectoral indices.

Bahrain ranks 62nd among the 139 economies featured in the 2025 Global Innovation Index (GII), which lists world economies according to their innovation capabilities.

While Bahrain’s main innovation strengths are university-industry research and development (R&D) collaboration (66) and human capital and research (80), its main innovation weaknesses are knowledge creation (112), public research-industry co-publications (132), high-tech imports (127) and creative output (96).

According to a 2024 study on international students in the Arab World, Bahrain ranks fourth – after the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar – among the six Arab Gulf countries hosting international students in their educational institutions. It also ranked 10th among the 22 Arab states.