Kuwaiti Ministers Announce Plan To Fight Inflation

According to Al-Rai Daily, Muhammad Al-Aiban, the Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of State for Youth Affairs, announced an extensive roadmap to address inflation and the rising prices of essential food commodities, particularly staples.

A comprehensive strategy to overcome these pressing economic challenges involves multiple government entities, the Council of Ministers, and cooperative societies.

Ten urgent recommendations are included in Minister Al-Aiban's vision for mitigating local inflation amidst the ongoing global price surge primarily caused by external factors. These proposals not only focus on immediate actions but also encompass strategies that can be executed in the short to medium term, contributing to sustainable price stability in the domestic market while mitigating the risks posed by high global inflation rates.

Minister Al-Aiban's urgent recommendations include the following key measures:

Exempting basic goods in cooperative societies from profit margins for a minimum of two years.

Reducing the payment period for suppliers’ dues to cooperative societies to a maximum of 15 days.

Substituting free items with reductions in commodity prices.

Activating the Competition Protection Authority’s role in cooperative societies for a minimum of two years to prevent monopolistic practices and offset anticipated food price hikes.

Stabilizing electricity, water, and state property prices for cooperative societies for at least two years to counter expected food price increases.

Reviewing administrative costs, especially salaries within cooperative societies.

Halting the recruitment of administrative positions in cooperative societies and restricting them to national workers in coordination with the Civil Service Commission.

Reevaluating appointment procedures in cooperative societies to align with Civil Service Commission requirements.

Revoking Ministry of Trade and Industry Resolution No. (67) of 2020 concerning price fixing.

Dissolving the Price Fixation Committee within the “Commerce” Ministry, formed in 2015, to be reconstituted under the Federation of Cooperative Societies.

The multifaceted approach of Minister Al-Aiban involves more than urgent recommendations:

The General Authority for Agriculture and Livestock should provide additional public warehouses to maintain food security. Responsibility lies with the Council of Ministers and the Agriculture Authority.

Expanding border crossings for meat imports, such as opening the Abdali crossing for Turkish meat imports. This proposal falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Interior and the Agriculture Authority.

In addition, Al-Aiban has recommended four actions to the General Authority of Customs:

Suspended customs duties and service fees on basic food commodities for two years.

Temporarily suspending fees imposed by the Kuwait Ports Authority on services provided for imported food commodity shipments for two years.

Expanding the opening of border crossings to import meat.

Postponing the application of value-added tax.

Seven additional recommendations involving multiple stakeholders are also included in the plan:

Suspending any state fee increases on food imports for at least two years is the responsibility of the Council of Ministers.

Revisiting the Cooperatives Law to enhance oversight of board of directors’ practices in cooperative societies and strengthen governance, overseen by the Ministry of Labor Affairs and the Federation of Associations.

Advancing customs facilities, a task assigned to the General Authority for Customs.

Delaying decisions related to local dumping tariffs is a responsibility of the General Authority of Customs.

Adopting models for the privatization of cooperative societies to reduce administrative costs and bolster the role of the private sector in the economy, under the jurisdiction of the General Investment.

 

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