KUWAIT CITY, Sept 3: The Kuwaiti Council of Ministers held its weekly meeting on Tuesday at Bayan Palace, chaired by His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, focusing on enhancing bilateral relations, reviewing government digital services, enforcing industrial regulations, and approving key legal and economic measures.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sherida Abdullah Al-Muasherji said the Cabinet was briefed on messages from the Amiri Diwan addressed to His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah from heads of brotherly and friendly countries, discussing ways to strengthen bilateral ties and joint cooperation in various fields.

The Cabinet reviewed a presentation by Minister of State for Communication Affairs Omar Saud Al-Omar and the executive committee of the Unified Government Application for Electronic Services (“Sahel”) on the platform’s achievements and future development plans. The application now has over 2.9 million active users and has processed more than 110 million electronic transactions, offering services from more than 40 government entities. The Cabinet urged continued efforts to expand and enhance digital services across all government departments to facilitate transactions for citizens and residents.

Minister of Commerce and Industry and PAI Chairman Khalifa Abdullah Al-Ajeel Al-Askar reported the withdrawal of licenses for more than 50 industrial, service, and craft plots over the past three months due to violations such as changing land purposes, subleasing, unauthorized activities, and lack of project implementation. The Cabinet emphasized the Public Authority for Industry’s commitment to protecting state industrial lands and taking legal action against violators.

The Cabinet also approved the formation of a ministerial committee, headed by the Minister of Commerce and Industry and including the Ministers of Health, State for Municipal Affairs, Justice, and Electricity, Water, and Renewable Energy, to review PAI decisions and related committees’ actions, submitting regular reports to the Council.

The Cabinet reviewed the Ministerial Committee for Legal Affairs’ minutes, including a draft decree-law for a unified international land transport system among GCC countries and several memoranda of understanding on financial and economic cooperation with sisterly and friendly countries. These drafts were approved and referred to His Highness the Amir for endorsement.

Economic affairs were addressed through the review of the 14th annual report of the Capital Markets Authority and the fifth annual report of the Insurance Regulatory Unit for the 2024-2025 fiscal year.

The Cabinet also endorsed the Public Services Committee report on the Green Urban Development Initiatives, which highlighted donations from government oil companies, consumer cooperatives, and private firms for landscaping highways, painting bridges, and afforestation in residential areas. The Cabinet expressed appreciation for these contributions, noting their role in enhancing the aesthetic and environmental aspects of main roads and urban areas.

Additional agenda items were discussed and approved, while some were referred to relevant ministerial committees for further study and reporting. The Cabinet also ratified the minutes of the Higher Committee for the Investigation of Kuwaiti Nationality, covering cases of loss and withdrawal of nationality under Decree Law No. 15 of 1959.