Kuwait ‘has all the key requirements for advancement’

KUWAIT: From 2006 to the end of September 2020, 15 governments were formed, with an average of approximately 350 days’ lifespan per government. From December 2020 until December 20, 2023, 8 governments were formed with an average lifespan of approximately 105 days per government, a decrease by 70 percent in the lifespan of one government.

The Kuwaiti government’s role is greater than any government in the world as the public sector generates about 70 percent of the economy and employs about 84 percent of national workers. And because both are artificial and unsustainable, the country needs a stable government with clear and well-defined visions over every period. This is almost impossible unless the first and last criterion in its formation is efficiency, by which stability is achieved.

Other indicators are not any better, as public education lags by 4.8 years of study. Although public and higher education have the highest spending rates in the world, the only public university has lagged in its classification beyond a thousand rank. A recent report on their costs indicates that the average cost of a student in the public education is KD 5,300 and the average cost of a student at Kuwait University is KD 6,451 for the bachelor’s level, and rises to KD 6,887 for postgraduate studies.

Nevertheless, the outcome of higher education does not have a strong relation with the needs of the labor market. After the failure to have a comprehensive repair for roads on announced schedules, the inability to simply repair potholes in main streets has become obvious. Despite Kuwait’s semi-complete dependence on oil, the Oil Minister recently stated that the sector is flabby and that Kuwait’s largest field - Burgan - may fail to achieve its production targets.

The reason why we mentioned the above is that Kuwait is at a crossroads. A new era has begun with the government resignation. As Kuwait has all the requirements and keys to advancement and excellence, the disease and cure lie in the content of its next executive administration. Kuwait deserves a public administration according to the best standards, even if the beginning will be tough after all the sabotage it has suffered over many decades.

Gross Domestic Product

GDP figures are the best and most important unit for measuring the progress or regress of a country’s economy. Therefore, their up-to-date, accuracy and details are extremely important. They are just like x-rays and analysis of the human body and their importance increases if the conditions of the economy or body are unhealthy. The Central Statistical Bureau (CSB) published GDP figures for Q2 of 2023 compared to Q2 of 2022.

These figures indicate a contraction of the Kuwaiti economy at constant prices by -1.3 percent. The GDP size, after the contraction at constant prices reached KD 9.981 billion, equivalent to $32.6 billion. The main reason for the contraction according to the CSB is the sharp decline in oil prices from the $113.5 per barrel during Q2 of 2022 to $78.3 per barrel for Q2 of 2023. The contribution of oil at constant prices to that output scored 51.5 percent, approximately (48.1 percent at current prices).

That means that the overwhelming dependence on oil in the formation of the economy continues, changing only according to its movement, as the economy is completely subject to oil market variables, which are beyond the control of the local decision-maker. The contribution of other sectors is historically minor and still is, which means that there is no effort to diversify sources of income.

The contribution of basic industries scored about 7.4 percent of GDP volume, declining by -1.6 percent in constant prices; the financial brokerage and insurance sector contributed by 9.0 percent, rising from 8.7 percent for the second quarter of 2022; the wholesale and retail trade contributed about 3.8 percent, and the services sector, most of which is government, contributed about 16 percent.