Cabinet acts to mitigate virus fallout
Cabinet said to rule out total curfew
KUWAIT CITY, April 1: Kuwait’s Cabinet held an extraordinary meeting Tuesday at the Seif Palace headed by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Hamad Al-Sabah, and Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh and said the following:
Within the framework of following up the effects of economic and social repercussions of the exceptional measures taken by the State in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, the Cabinet reviewed a report from the joint economic team between government agencies and the private sector to provide practical scenarios to address the
economic repercussions and mitigate its effects.
The Cabinet discussed the results of team’s work in which more than 82 persons with expertise, specialization and representatives of local associations and federations as well as specialized international institutions participated, explaining the unique and unprecedented nature of this global crisis, whose effects, and repercussions included all countries of the world.
It also discussed the contents of the report aimed at confirming the State’s ability and keenness to preserve the fundamentals of the national economy, avoid the costs that might arise from stopping the wheel of the national economy at various levels, and avoid negative effects in some economic sectors, including maintaining the credit rating of Kuwait.
The report clarified the basic principles that were based on presenting the team’s perceptions, which were represented in: 1. Keening public capital and rationalizing its use in the interest of the public, while emphasizing that these measures are to ensure the continued rotation of the economic activity, and not to compensate companies or individuals.
2. Commitment to full transparency in the implementation and follow-up of procedures.
3. Ensuring social protection for citizens.
4. Maintaining the national employees’ conditions in the private sector and increasing their numbers.
5. Investing the proposed measures in support of structural reforms of the economy.
6. Providing various ways of support and facilities subject to commitment to the requirements of national economy structural reforms.
In this regard, the report examined a number of measures aimed at social protection, including:
1. Ensure the safety of the citizens working in the sectors affected by the repercussions of the crisis.
2. Maintaining the necessary support to maintain stability in the levels and prices of food and medical commodities in local markets.
3. Establishing a mechanism to secure the minimum income that ensures facing the cost of living for workers affected by the current crisis and linked to contracts.
4. Support the salaries of those registered under Chapter 5 in Social Security in the affected sectors.
5. Assist owners of small, medium, industrial and agricultural projects by postponing the installments funded by the National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprises Development and the agricultural finance portfolio in the Industrial Bank.
6. Providing loans on concessional and long terms to small and medium enterprises, through joint financing from local banks and the National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Development.
7. Providing soft and long-term loans on the affected companies and clients, provided by local banks.
8. Postponing the share of business owners in the private and oil sectors not fully owned by the State from the monthly contributions due to the Social Security Institution for a period of (6) months, in addition to postponing the payment of the monthly contributions due to the insured in accordance with the provisions of Chapter Five of the Social Security Law for a period of (6) months, as well postponing the deduction of the replacement part of the retirement pension according to Article (77) of the Law for a period of (6) months.
9. Payment of the retirement pension on the assumption that what the law permits is not disbursed in advance for cases that have benefited from the provision of Article (112) bis of the Social Security Law for a period of (6) months, provided that the legal instrument necessary to implement this decision is specified.
10. Provide government exemptions to the affected economic institutions in the productive sectors and the cooperative societies from some government fees and dues if these exemptions are reflected on their clients with the same value.
11. Instruct government bodies to expedite routine work cycle to pay the obligations due to the private sector as quickly as possible.
The report also included the legislative requirements necessary to implement its recommendations related to the governance and follow-up of the implementation of the proposed procedures, and ended with the formation of a higher steering committee to follow up, evaluate and implement the procedures and a strategic and technical support team in order to ensure the implementation of these procedures.
The Cabinet has set up a committee headed by the Governor of the Central Bank of Kuwait and the membership of Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance — and the managing director of the General Investment Authority to put the incentive pillars of the local economy.
Right to enter homes
The doctors and nursing staff appointed by Minister of Health will henceforth have the right to enter private houses at any time in search of
those infected with coronavirus and isolate them, reports Al-Anba daily quoting informed sources.
In an exclusive statement to the daily, the sources called upon everyone to cooperate with the doctors and nursing staff to ensure full protection.
They revealed that the Cabinet instructed Ministry of Education to allocate schools to shelter expatriate workers in a bid to eliminate the current congestion in some residential buildings.
The sources indicated that comprehensive tests of the Asians working in cooperative societies will be conducted in order to verify their health status in relation to coronavirus, after their services were temporarily suspended.
Meanwhile, in confirmation to the exclusive news published by the daily on Tuesday, the Cabinet ruled out total curfew, and postponed taking a decision to impose lockdown on some areas of the country until further notice.
The Cabinet also agreed in principle to the draft law submitted by the Public Institution for Social Security to postpone the installments due on retirees for a period of six months.
In this regard, sources said the bill will be submitted to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in preparation for referring it to the National Assembly as a matter of urgency.
They revealed that the government will request an emergency session to pass the law in two deliberations at the same session, adding that work is ongoing in full swing to complete the law and publish it in the official gazette so that the implementation is not postponed until May.
Regarding the resumption of official government hours especially since there are cases negatively affected by the disruption of government departments, the sources said, “There are several solutions including the formation of teams to work on rotation for completing the stalled transactions”.
Educational file
The parliamentary Educational Affairs Committee on Tuesday discussed the comments and recommendations on dealing with the educational file in light of the current crisis.
Present at the meeting were the Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr Saud Helal Al-Harbi, senior ministry officials, acting President of Kuwait University Dr Fayez Al-Dhefairi, Director General of the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training (PAAET) Dr Ali Al-Mudhaf, and Private Universities Council Secretary General Dr Habib Abul.
In a press statement after the meeting, Committee Chairman MP Dr Oudah AlRuwai’e disclosed the committee holds regular meetings – two per week. He pointed out that addressing the issue entails adoption of two probable scenarios: one is if the crisis ends before Aug 4,2020 and the other is if the crisis lasts longer.
He said there were questions about the return of the teaching staff due to the fact that they have to be quarantined. He revealed the committee called for enforcing regulations laid down by the health authorities even after Aug 4 and even if the crisis ends before this date as a precautionary measure.
He added the committee discussed the suggestion to hold online classes in case the crisis lasts longer than Aug 4, stressing that online education is part of the emergency plan of the ministry.
He went on to say that Al-Harbi informed the committee about a detailed and integrated plan in this regard, affirming the plan will be referred to the committee after 10 days.
He disclosed a number of Kuwaitis, who were supposed to enroll on scholarship in foreign universities, will not be able to do so; hence, the committee asked the ministry to provide alternative scholarships in Kuwait or in other GCC countries in order to reduce pressure on public and private institutes and colleges in Kuwait.
He also praised the decisions taken by the acting president of Kuwait University and the director of PAAET to exempt students whose scholarships ended from allowance deductions. He added the Ministry of Higher Education confirmed its commitment to disburse the allowance of Kuwaiti students, including those studying abroad on their own expense.
He said the committee suggested forming a team, which will be tasked to coordinate with the committee and different educational institutions, in following up the execution of
recommendations and then inform the committee about the recent developments in this regard.
On the other hand, Al-Harbi confirmed that the ministry is preparing a plan, which will be referred to the committee within 10 days. He revealed the plan covers the situation in public and private educational institutions.
He described the meeting with the committee as fruitful in all sense of the word, praising the cooperation of the National Assembly in addressing the coronavirus crisis.
He said the ministry takes into consideration the comments and suggestions, indicating an agreement has been reached not to stop education in Kuwait and that they cannot commit such a sin against the students. He added they also agreed that online education is optional.
In another development, MP Muhammad Hadi Al-Hewaila warned the expatriate laborers are considered a ticking bomb because they live in crammed houses where there is a big chance of spreading coronavirus.
He called for replacing these workers with volunteers until they are tested and those infected are isolated, asserting they should be allowed to resume work only after providing them with safe and healthy accommodations. Contact US authorities Kuwait Embassy in Washington called on Kuwaiti students who finished their university studies or due to graduate this semester to contact immigration authorities to extend their residency permits.
The embassy, in a statement Tuesday, said those students should ask their universities to maintain their residency permit or reactivating it through the “SEVIS” platform, in order to give the student more time to correct his legal residency status.
Those students, it added, should request an extension or change status of their residencies through: www.uscis.gov/i-539.
If a request is submitted, said the embassy, his residency would not be considered expired until a decision adopted regarding his request.
The embassy said the cultural offices would reach out to all students for clarifications.
28 new cases
The Kuwaiti Ministry of Health said Wednesday that 28 people were infected by the novel coronavirus, known as C0VID-19, in the last 24 hours.
This brings the country’s tally of confirmed virus cases up to 317, the ministry’s Spokesman Dr Abdullah Al-Sanad said in the daily briefing.
The fresh cases include three patients related to travel; a Kuwaiti citizen related to travel to the UK and two Indians related to travel to India, he said.
The remaining cases who had close contacts with previously announced patients come from India, Nepal and Bangladesh, the spokesman added.
Earlier in the day, Kuwaiti Minister of Health Sheikh Dr Bassel Al-Sabah announced the recovery of seven patients from the novel coronavirus, raising the country’s total recoveries to 80.
In addition, 237 virus patients are still receiving necessary treatment, while 14 others are in intensive care units; including four in critical condition.
The spokesman; once again, urged citizens and residents alike to follow the guidelines and instructions of Kuwaiti health authorities and World Health Organization, primarily maintaining social distancing and home quarantine, in order to curb the spread of the virus.