Kuwaiti laws maintain salaries, privileges of State employees – Plan to boost pvt sector’s role
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KUWAIT CITY, March 23, (KUNA): The Kuwait laws stresses the need to maintain salaries and financial privileges of State’s employees, said an official. The strategic alternative project seeks to address the issue of salaries’ gaps, Undersecretary of Finance Ministry Khalifa Hamada, added in a speech at the national conference on priorities which kicked off earlier Tuesday. The project will increase salaries of current job categories which didn’t enjoy any privileges, he said, indicating that there would be many economic and financial reforms aiming to enhance the role of the private sector and create opportunities for citizens.
Burdens
The project will raise burdens on the State’s budget, in the first year of implementation, up to KD 300 million, but it will, in the long run, save money due to a decrease of new employees’ salaries, he stressed. Subsidies provided by the State consumes about a quarter of the budget and there is a study seeking to decrease it, he said. Meanwhile, Undersecretary of Information Ministry Tareq Al-Mezrem stressed keenness on raising the State’s resources and diversifying sources of income, in addition to spending rationalization. “Our duty as government bodies is to collect bad debts to alleviate the budget’s burdens,” he said, noting that adopting new policy at the ministry generates revenues to the State. Eman AlMutairi, assistant secretary general of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development (SCPD), underlined the importance of diversifying sources of income so as to maintain sustainable development. She said making use of rationalization of public spending is related to best performances of the government, adding that the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development with its axes and goals included important paths for Kuwait in cutting spending. She stressed the significance of shedding light on the goals of sustainable development and its economic, social, environment axes. She called for creating new jobs for youth and empowering women economically.
Spending
Mohammad Al-Awwash, assistant undersecretary of informative planning and development sector at Ministry of Information, said the committee tasked with addressing money waste includes some government bodies and held more than 15 meetings to be briefed on the plan of rationalizing spending. The committee was keen to bring together all officials at ministries and research bodies so as to review visions pertaining to determination of priorities and expenditure rationalization, he said. Dr Ahmad Al-Awadhi, an official at Kuwait Institute for Scientific Researches, spoke about effects of low oil prices on economies of GCC member states. The conference kicked off earlier today under the auspices of Deputy Premier, Finance Minister and Acting Oil Minister Anas Al-Saleh. Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Al-Sabah attended the conference
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