Southern Governorate Moves to Tackle Visual Clutter from Shop Signs

TDT | Manama

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Concerns over unregulated shop signage and oversized advertisements have prompted calls for stricter municipal controls in Bahrain’s Southern Governorate, aimed at improving the urban landscape and ensuring fairness among businesses.

Southern Municipal Council member Mohammed Hussain Darraj raised the issue during the council’s final session of its fourth term under “any other business,” urging the introduction of unified standards for commercial signage sizes.

Darraj warned that the absence of clear regulations allows some businesses to dominate visual space while disadvantaging others, in addition to contributing to visual clutter and encroachment on public areas.

He also called for clearer rules on the use of languages on shopfronts, stressing the importance of maintaining Arabic alongside English, and cautioned against excessive multilingual displays that he said could dilute national identity.