Pride of place in planning for ‘knowledge economy’

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KUWAIT CITY, Feb 1, (KUNA): Eminent academics called on Monday for evolving all levels of education in the country to be a leading factor for knowledge-based economy. Speaking at the last session of the national conference on modern state jobs from an economic point of view, Dr. Adel Al-Huseinan, Vice President of Kuwait University for Planning, said efforts directed to education should focus on providing knowledge to students. This goal should be achieved through an optimal use of available infrastructure of education to cover all levels of education, he added.

On her part, Dr. Bibi Al-Ajmi stressed on the importance of listing curricula coping with a perspective of knowledge-based economy to move to a creative education, indicating that there are programs focusing on knowledgebased economy. Meanwhile, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council for Planning and Development (SCPD) Khaled Mahdi said Kuwait’s development plan embraces the promotion of the effective role by knowledge-based economy. This can be notched up by means of encouraging innovation, buttressing creativity, change and development, as part of a societal culture, Mahdi said, addressing the conference on functions of a modern state through the perspective of the knowledge-based economy.

The SCPD chief called for setting out blueprints and programs of action for addressing the major challenges the State is facing for the time being, considering the country’s decision-making process as “complicated”. On his part, Director-General of the Arab Planning Institute Bader Malallah said it is necessary to promote and consolidate the concept of privatization and governance in the diverse sectors of the State. The economies of developing countries need a quantum shift in order to keep abreast of the global economy, he said, pointing out that developing countries suffer a deep gap between economy and knowledge.

For his part, Director of Arab Planning Institute (API) Bader Malallah said knowledge-based economy would be listed in development plans through programs focusing on evolving national economy and enhancing growth in the country. In a statement to KUNA on sidelines of the conference, Malallah added that the event discusses a key issue represented in searching for alternatives for activating national economy amid the current economic phase which has many challenges and difficulties. Kuwait’s institutions and bodies, specialized in knowledge-based economy, are available, but they need improvement in their performance, and further cooperation and coordination, he said.

Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), Kuwait University, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research and Arab Planning Institute are key institutions in the area of knowledgebased economy, he noted. He said that these institutions, through partnership based on knowledge-based economy, will work on promoting scientific research and improving the country’s economy through knowledge and the localization of technology.

Producing knowledge and turning it into a commodity in the country needs paying much attention to these institutions and enhancing the use of information in national economy, he said, indicating that this move faces many challenges on national and Arab levels. He called for increasing the budget of scientific research as it is very low in Kuwait and Arab countries, stressing the need to reform knowledge institutions, mainly the area of scientific research and educational system. Meanwhile, MP Khalil Abdullah said on Monday the National Assembly (Parliament) has enacted a set of legislations aimed at boosting knowledge-based economy at the national level and is ready to examine any new ones the Government may forward to it.

He said “the initiative in this regard is in the government hands because it possesses the apparatuses and specialized authorities for forwarding bills on knowledge economy.” The Parliament is ready to discuss and endorse any bill intended to bolster the national economy, particularly in the realm of knowledge and technological economy, he added.

Khong Ming, CEO of the Singaporean systems institute, said his country, due to shortage of natural resources, was compelled in the 80s to shift to the knowledge-based economy, with focus on overhauling teaching and technology sectors. Ming added during the session, chaired by Advisor of the Amiri Diwan Dr. Yousef Al-Ibrahim, that concentration on teaching ensures progress of internal investments, particularly in engineering and advanced technologies. Singapore, in the 80s, had only 1,800 technology experts, thus a special plan was mapped out to develop the sector, and in the early 90s, the figure reached some 150,000.

Yousef Shahid of the World Bank said global economic challenges compelled nations to focus on developing internal trade, noting necessity to stimulate private enterprise in productive sectors, in shadow of technological changes. He also called for increasing research for investment in new innovations.

However he cautioned that expanding technology had deprived a large number of personnel of their jobs. For her part, Amani Al-Baddah, Director of International Relations at Kuwait Foundation for Advancement of Sciences (KFAS), underscored Kuwait’s strategic location, available human and financial resources; basic factors for pressing ahead with the knowledge-based economy.

UN Development Program Resident Representative Zineb Touimi-Benjelloun stressed the UN readiness to provide support for Kuwait so as to promote its efforts in development and knowledge-based economy through certain programs. She said the UNDP is a strategic partner at the conference which sheds light on the importance of knowledge economy in achieving sustainable development. She added that the event will focus on government efforts seeking to create jobs for youth within the framework of the concept of knowledge economy.

On his part, Trevor Liu, CEO of Huawei Technologies in Kuwait, said, in a similar speech, knowledge-based economy based on information technology is built through joint innovations and open partnerships. Huawei has expanded its branches for the first time in 16 years in external markets and managed to make success that helped it be an international technological company which provides services to a third of the world’s population, he added.

This move was made by setting up open partnerships across the globe through innovation and competition, he noted. The State of Kuwait provides several privileges as it has a strategic location, a political democratic regime, skilled workers, an infrastructure and information technology, he said, indicating that all these privileges contribute to promoting the State’s knowledge-based economy.

Huawei will continue cooperation with the Kuwaiti Government through providing technologies which can meet the State’s needs, he stressed. Earlier today, Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, and Minister of State for Planning and Development Affairs Hind Al-Sabeeh said Kuwait’s jobs sector must be re-organized to follow up with the developments in the modern world. The country can re-organize jobs by following a draft law called (Economic Activities Law), which allows national economic bodies to be independent on financial and administrative levels, while also granting them the right of self-financing, Al-Sabeeh, representing His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah at the conference, said.

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