KUWAIT CITY, Oct 16: The concerned authorities should immediately take the necessary steps to regulate the prices of goods in the local market to ease the financial burdens of citizens, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily quoting Head of the Distinguished Family Society and Al-Fatah Sports Club Sheikha Fareeha Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

Sheikha Fareeha asked the authorities to play their supervisory role effectively to prevent the greedy traders from manipulating the prices of goods.  She lamented the unreasonable increase in the prices of vegetables and fish has negatively affected the consumers.

On issues concerning the Kuwaiti Fishermen Union, Sheikha Fareeha stressed the need to conduct a comprehensive study to identify the problems, adopt appropriate solutions, and strictly enforce the law.  She suggested the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) must study the local market to determine if a decision issued in 2004 is applicable or not before pushing for its implementation.

Meanwhile, Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Dr Mohammed Al-Afasi said the Union of Cooperative Societies has started putting a ‘cooperation’ seal on all imported commodities to boost competition among traders and to encourage them to reduce prices of all essential commodities, reports Al-Watan Arabic daily.

The minister said a committee formed to unify prices of all commodities in cooperative markets has so far unified prices of nearly 5,000 commodities. The committee submits a periodical report to the ministry.
Al-Afasi further said a number of draft laws aimed at controlling prices in cooperative societies are likely to be approved in the coming legislative term.