Speed replacement of expatriate advisers, MP urges government – ‘Nationals first’
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KUWAIT CITY, Feb 23: MP Khalil Al-Saleh praised Minister of Commerce and Industry and State Minister for Youth Affairs Khalid Al-Roudan for terminating the services of all expatriate advisers who were replaced with Kuwaitis.
He urged other ministers to take a similar step in order to empower national workers. He asserted the government must implement the Kuwaitization policy and the first step is to appoint nationals in decision- making bodies. He asked the Council of Ministers to adopt a resolution instructing ministries and other government institutions to speed up the appointment of Kuwaiti advisers in place of expatriates.
He emphasized the need for the government to lead the way in addressing the lopsided population issue. He added that correcting loopholes in the appointment procedures has become necessary due to the long list of citizens waiting for jobs. Meanwhile, the Business Environment Improvement and Small Enterprises Committee in the Parliament on Thursday approved the proposal to increase the capital of Kuwait Industrial Bank portfolio by KD 150 million which will be reimbursed by Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) and the Ministry of Finance.
Speaking to the press after the meeting, committee member MP Osama Al-Shaheen disclosed the legal duration of the portfolio’s work is supposed to end this year but the panel agreed to extend the period for another 20 years.
He said the draft law on increasing the capital of the portfolio will be included in the agenda of the National Assembly, indicating the legislature is expected to approve the bill unanimously considering the positive response of the representatives of various government institutions in Thursday’s committee meeting. He pointed out that approval of the proposal will lead to positive competition in the field of microfinance, hoping it will increase the percentage of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the national economy. He added, “The current rate does not exceed five percent of the national economy. We want to emulate the United States of America and France where SMEs constitute 70 percent of the national economy. If only we increased the percentage earlier, we would have succeeded in diversifying of national income sources by now.”
By Abubakar A. Ibrahim Arab Times Staff
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