KUWAIT CITY, May 11: During January and February this year, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry provided substantial support for Kuwaiti citizens totaling around 64 million dinars, covering various materials including construction supplies and basic food items, reports Al-Qabas daily. The majority of the support, approximately 42.4 million dinars, was allocated to citizens eligible for housing support, particularly for construction materials.

Additionally, about 19.3 million dinars were allocated for basic food supplies, and around 2 million dinars were dedicated to milk and children’s nutrients. The ministry’s data revealed that the total number of beneficiaries of this support, including Kuwaiti citizens, GCC residents in Kuwait, stateless individuals (bedoun), and registered domestic workers, stood at approximately 2.1 million by the end of February. Interestingly, this number showed a decrease of about 100,000 beneficiaries compared to the same period last year. Government sources explained that this decline was a result of the ministry’s efforts to audit and clean up beneficiary records.

This process involved removing ineligible categories such as deceased individuals and workers with expired residency permits. Moreover, the ministry collaborated with other government agencies, including the Ministry of Interior and the Kuwait Supply Company, to ensure that only eligible individuals receive support. For example, support for domestic workers is contingent upon their presence on their sponsor’s civil card. If a sponsor is not listed on the ration card, the support is canceled.

Suspension
Additionally, cooperation with the Public Authority for Civil Information led to the suspension of subsidized rations for citizens who were deceased or whose civil cards had expired. This initiative aimed to prevent the disbursal of rations to ineligible individuals, such as deceased citizens or departed domestic workers, thereby reducing unnecessary costs and ensuring support reaches those who truly need it.

Meanwhile, the Civil Service Commission (CSC) has clarified that it determines the number of employees sent abroad to obtain doctorate, master’s or bachelor’s degrees or diploma; based on the budget allocated by the Ministry of Finance with the approval of the concerned employers, reports Al-Anba daily. This is in response to a question about the reasons why the CSC does not send employees abroad to continue their studies in line with the actual need of the labor market to address the shortage of manpower with certain specializations.

The CSC pointed out that approving the number of such employees depends on the budget allotted by the Ministry of Finance, in addition to obtaining approval from the concerned employer whenever an employee is sent abroad to study or on official mission. Meanwhile, sources stressed that despite this; the CSC allows Kuwaitis employed in any ministry or government agency to complete their studies in some rare specializations. In this case, the CSC shoulders the salaries, allowances, tuition fees and airline tickets for these employees and their children, sources revealed. On the type of specializations, sources cited nursing and educational specializations that the country still needs; on the condition that upon completion of studies, the concerned employees must continue working in the government sector for a period similar to the duration of their studies.