Competition boosts human ingenuity, inventiveness
Noorah a young scientist passionate about economics
– Editor
Alhasan is a young Kuwaiti seriously concerned about the future of her country. Educated by the English and American method of education, she grew up with an open minded disposition that enhanced her analytical propensity for looking deeper into what goes on around her. Happy in her childhood, the only time that marred her young life was during the Iraqi invasion when soldiers stormed her home and took away her father and uncle. Only when they were released few days later she regained her peace of mind.
Noorah was then five years old, too young to be inversely affected by what was going on around her; all she remembers of the invasion was the thrill of riding the bicycle with her father when moving from one district to another to see her grandparents. That incidentally was the time when traveling by car one ran the risk of having his vehicle confiscated if not registered under the Iraqi regime. Remembering the invasion the strange thing she saw in waking up early that morning (the second of August 1990) was seeing from the window of her room lots of dogs in the street, this is quite unusual in Kuwait! Her parents were still asleep, so she returned to her bed. After the invasion going to school and meeting other girls distracted her from what- ever memories lingered in her mind of that period.
Education
Throughout her formal education Noorah was among the first five in her class, she loved all subjects, except history which she found rather boring. At graduation she chose to major in pharmacy but after one year studying the subject in the UK she felt it was not her field. At her return home she became interested in economics whose broad spectrum gave her a clearer view on economy as the key to understanding what goes on in the world at large and in her country.
At the Kuwait University delving into Managerial Economics, Econometrics, Financial Economy, Economics of International finance and Microeconomics it became obvious to her that the stability and progress of any country, indeed of the world depends on a sustainable economy based on the harmonious cooperation among individuals and nations, on the recycling of vital resources while minimizing waste.
Ancient communities such as the Malagan Ladakh in Turkey functioned sustainably for many centuries with division of labor and all parts contributing to each other’s welfare. Beautiful three-storey buildings, irrigated wheat fields, herds of animal, festival displaying their art, their theater and music, crops adequate to feed and support their people in good health. The Malagan Ladakh knew no poverty. As long as the world economy remains more competitive than cooperative humanity will suffer from injustice, wars and revolutions.
As mentioned Noorah was easily bored in class during the history lesson, but delving into the field of economics she soon discovered that the whole history of humanity – its development and culture have been dictated by economic pressure beginning with the first human groups coming together for mutual support and survival. Such communities reaching a sustainable economy based on Agriculture, husbandry and trade lived in peace; their social structure based on partnership and cooperation enhanced their wellbeing and prosperity. Trouble began when they were subjugated by the conquering nomads who disrupted their culture and imposed their own. The social structure that emerged based on class division and competitive antagonism has been widening the gap between the rich and poor and has given birth to all sort of social illnesses plaguing humanity ever since with inequalities, social injustice, power greed, slavery, wars, revolutions and terrorism.
Structure
On the other hand competition widened the field of human interaction, spurring commerce and trade as well as human ingenuity and inventiveness in creating new industries. Those industries feeding the war machine have been by far the most consequential in human history especially on cultures. Indeed we are so dependent on our social ideas and structure that we are ready to fight even die to preserve them!
The more Noorah delved into economics the more she became enticed with its historical background especially of her country, whose economy from the start had been based on commerce and trade by land and sea. Commerce with the outside world made Kuwaiti merchants and sailors open to new ideas and alert to opportunities that could lead to new avenue of prosperity. It was this mentality that spurred a group of merchants to set the infrastructure of a new social and cultural development in the country at the first discovery of oil in the land in 1934 at Bahra.
From that date they set to establish the infrastructure of a civil administration with priority on education for both boys and girls, preparing the young generation for the responsibility ahead. The discovery of a rich oil field at Burgan in February 1938 further spurred their incentive in opening the way to the modernization of their country. When in the early fifties the oil revenues began pouring in, the nation was ready for major developments and the Amir, Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Al Sabah could put into action his dictum “The wealth of this country belongs to its people” with adopting a unique policy that enabled the distribution of the new wealth to the nation.
Enterprises
This spurred many of the newly rich to engage in commercial enterprises that led to a diversified economy. In little more than two decades Kuwait had minimized dependency on oil revenues through mutually consistent developments and the integration of short and long range realistic targets achieved by a comparative- ly large middle class of merchants and the new entrepreneurs.
The history of her country made Noorah more aware of the current situation in which she sees great human potentials in the young generation of smart individuals with the knowledge and the stamina in turning events. With such a wealth at hand Kuwait should go ahead, instead it is lagging behind the other Gulf countries for which in the past it was the torch of inspiration.
The law that prevents the government sector from sacking any Kuwaiti employee who doesn’t do his job may not be repealed, but there is a solution to the injustice done to the other employees who are working hard while their colleagues are doing little or nothing, receive the same salary and even are raised to higher positions. Leniency by the government sector towards such individuals demoralizes those who respect timing and their obligation to work. Some become so frustrated that they leave their job and look for work in the private sector.
However the reputation that Kuwaitis are lazy and spoiled makes the private sector reluctant in hiring any of them, for it needs people who can produce. Unable to get a job that gives them satisfaction in their country, many are leaving to work abroad. This is serious, for Kuwait is losing its best potentials. The solution is a simple strategy: those employees who don’t respect timing and don’t work are warned and their salary reduced if they do not improve their performance. The money factor is a strong incentive!
To be continued