Bahrain lawmaker calls for granting university degree-based allowance

Manama: Bahraini nationals should be given allowances by the government for their university degrees, a lawmaker has said.

"A Bahraini who has a BA and is working in the public sector should be given an extra 100 dinars in monthly allowances," MP Sawsan Al Taqawi said. "An employee with a Masters' degree should be given 200 dinars and with a PhD should receive 300 dinars."

Sawsan, who was elected in September to the lower chamber, said that he motion aims to encourage Bahraini nationals to further their studies and to seek the highest degrees in recognised universities.

"We have a new generation of Bahrainis who are impressively ambitious and genuinely keen on obtaining advanced degrees. They should be encouraged, especially that Bahrainis are the true assets of our country," she said.

The motion will have to be approved by a parliamentary committee before it can be discussed by the 40 members of the lower chamber. If passed, it will go through the upper chamber before it reaches the government.