In October 8th and 9th, Kuwait's skies are expected to witness a meteor shower between sunset and midnight, according to the Al-Ajiri Scientific Center. The center also revealed that the Sayadiyat meteor shower will be visible in Kuwait's skies on October 21st and 22nd.

The October moon will appear on the 14th of the month in further astronomical events. Furthermore, on the 23rd of October, the planet Venus will be observed at its greatest distance from the sun.

Skywatchers can look forward to the Hunter's Moon, which will illuminate the night sky on the 28th of October as we near the end of October.

This October, the world will also witness two significant celestial events. On the 4th and 14th, an annular solar eclipse will occur, although it will not be visible from Kuwait. On the 29th, a lunar eclipse is scheduled, but it is not visible from Kuwait.

The Indian Railways is preparing to introduce a novel cleanliness initiative called the ‘14-Minute Miracle’ in its Vande Bharat trains. Under this scheme, which will be launched by Union Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw on Sunday, the Vande Bharat trains will be swiftly cleaned and made ready for the next trip in just 14 minutes. Currently, the cleaning of the trains takes about 45 minutes.

“This innovative initiative will now be implemented across all Vande Bharat trains at 29 railway stations including in Delhi, Chennai, Puri and Shirdi,” announced the railway minister, who will kickstart the scheme at the Delhi Cantonment railway station. 

Vaishnaw added that the ‘14-Minute Miracle’ will be carried out daily on all operational Vande Bharat trains across various routes. “The ‘14-Minute Miracle’ will continue (after the launch on Sunday). After a few months, we plan to extend this initiative to other express trains as well,” he said. 

“Railway employees across the country will implement this initiative, ensuring that onboard cleaning is completed swiftly without causing any inconvenience to passengers, regardless of where the Vande Bharat train is stationed,” said a senior railway officer.

Similar cleanliness initiatives are in place in other countries. The Japanese railways employ a similar ‘7-Minute Miracle’, said a senior railway official. The Japanese railway staff clean their bullet trains in 7 minutes, including collecting trash, wiping each of the 1,700 individual tables, opening the curtains, rotating the seats 180 degrees to make them face the front of the train, and numerous other tasks.

Parliament’s Committee for Interior and Defence Affairs will hold a meeting on Sunday to discuss the bill on amending the law related to foreigners’ residency in Kuwait.

The bill, which consists of 37 articles split into seven chapters, allows Kuwaiti women to grant their non-Kuwaiti husbands and children permanent residency but under one condition, which is that she must not have obtained Kuwaiti citizenship as per article 8, i.e., acquiring citizenship because of getting married to a Kuwaiti citizen. Former non-Kuwaiti wives or widows of Kuwaiti men are allowed to obtain permanent residency as long as they have children from that marriage.

According to the bill, hotels and furnished rental apartments must inform the relevant department at the Ministry of Interior about the names of their foreign clients and the dates of their check-in and check-out.

The fees for residency renewal and entry visa will be determined by a ministerial decision to be issued by the minister of Interior.

The bill imposes penalties of maximum three-year imprisonment and/or a fine ranging from KD 5,000 to KD 10,000 against individuals who are accused of human trafficking by bringing in expatriate workers after receiving money from them.

The Public Prosecution is authorised as the relevant authority to identify the crime in a lawsuit as human trafficking.

As per the bill, foreigners are allowed to stay in Kuwait for a maximum of three months after the expiry of their temporary residency, in case they are unable to renew or transfer residency.

Expatriates can obtain a maximum of five-year residency. The children of Kuwaiti women and the owners of real estate in Kuwait can obtain a maximum residency of ten years. Foreign investors can obtain a maximum of 15-year residency. The Council of Ministers will define the businesses included in this condition, and the required amount of investment.

Expatriate workers of a public sector institution cannot be granted a license to work in another public sector institution without the approval of the first institution.

Domestic workers are allowed to stay in Kuwait for the term period of their contract unless their residency is cancelled after leaving the work. In such a case, they are to be granted a grace period, as defined by the relevant department at the Ministry of Interior, to leave unless they obtain a new residency from another sponsor.

Transfer of domestic labor residency will not be allowed without the approval of the employer. Domestic workers can stay outside Kuwait for a maximum of four continuous months unless they obtain a permit from the relevant department at the Ministry of Interior prior to the end of the four months.

The bill authorised the Minister of Interior to deport expatriate workers, even if they hold a valid residency, in case the minister deems deportation necessary to preserve public interest or based on moral and security reasons, or if they are not working to survive.

The decision to deport may include the expatriate’s family members whom he sponsors. Deported expatriates can be subject to one-month arrest but will be able to renew residency before leaving Kuwait.

The Minister of Interior is authorised to exempt deported expatriates from paying the fines resulting from previous violations. Presidents of other countries, their family members, the members of diplomatic delegations and their family members, and holders of special passports of political nature are exempted from this law. The Minister of Interior is authorised to exempt specific individuals from this law for courtesy/ complimentary reasons.

The report on the bill is expected to be completed before the end of parliamentary vacation in order to be scheduled during the upcoming sessions.

By Saeed Mahmoud Saleh
Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staffno

On Sunday, the parliamentary Interior and Defense Committee will discuss the “Residency of Foreigners” project which had been submitted to the National Assembly ample times before. It is believed the proposal will soon be finalized in terms of its articles with the purpose of referring it to the Parliament for inclusion on the session’s next agenda, reports Al-Rai daily.

The draft comprises 37 articles and 7 chapters various aspects such as entry and deportation of foreigners, combating visa trafficking, and associated penalties. This is in addition to granting Kuwaiti women married to foreigners the right to sponsor their husbands and children, provided they haven’t obtained citizenship as per Article 8. The project also outlines penalties for violations.

The project also mandates that hotels and furnished residences must report to the judicial authorities when they rent to foreigners their accommodations. It also stipulates that fees related to residence, renewals, and various entry visas will be determined by ministerial decisions.

The draft strongly prohibits the trafficking of residencies, including exploitation, recruitment, or facilitation of recruitment of foreigners in exchange for monetary gains or benefits. Violations of this law incur criminal penalties, including imprisonment for a maximum of three years and a fine ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 dinars. The draft designates the Public Prosecution for exclusive jurisdiction in exempting individuals from residency trafficking penalties.

The government had earlier submitted a memorandum containing amendments aimed at aligning perspectives with the committee members. The amendments were in response to objections raised by MPs regarding certain articles in the project.

Foreigners on Visit Visa

Notably, managers of hotels and furnished residences intending to rent must inform the Ministry of Interior authority within 48 hours when foreigners stay in or depart their facilities. Employees, as designated by the Minister of Interior, have the right to inspect records and report violations. The amendments also grant residence permits to Kuwaiti citizens for their foreign husbands and children. Widows or divorced Kuwaiti individuals with children from a foreign spouse can also obtain residence permits.

Additionally, the amendments allow temporary residence for foreigners in Kuwait, not exceeding three months. They must leave the country upon its expiration unless they obtain a renewal for up to one year. Longer-term regular residence permits (up to five years) can be granted to foreigners, and children of Kuwaiti women and property owners may receive residency for up to ten years. Investors may be granted residency for up to 15 years based on specific investment criteria set by the Council of Ministers.

The law enforces regulations on foreigner residency. For instance, a government employee cannot hold a residence permit with another entity without approval from their current employing entity. Similarly, non-governmental entity employees need approval from the competent authority for a residence permit.

Domestic Workers
Amendments concerning domestic workers are also outlined in the memorandum. Domestic workers and those in similar roles may receive regular residence permits in line with Article 13 of the law, based on their recruitment contract duration. If their residency is canceled upon leaving work, they must exit Kuwait within the stipulated period unless granted a new residency permit beforehand. Transferring their residency requires the worker’s employer’s approval. The domestic worker may not stay outside Kuwait for more than four months without prior permission from the Ministry of Interior.

Cases of Deportation
The law grants the Minister of Interior the authority to deport a foreigner, even with a valid residence permit, if deportation is deemed necessary for public interest, security, morals, or if the individual lacks a legitimate source of income. The deportation decision may extend to the foreigner’s family members dependent on them. Detention of a foreigner subject to deportation may not exceed thirty days, with the possibility of renewal if required to implement the deportation decision. The Minister of Interior may waive fines for deported foreigners upon their departure from Kuwait.

Exemptions from the Law
Certain categories are excluded from the law’s provisions, including heads of state and their families, officials and staff of diplomatic missions along with their families (subject to reciprocity), holders of diplomatic, special, and political passports (subject to reciprocity), and individuals whom the Minister of the Interior deems appropriate to exclude due to courtesy-related considerations.

In light of the expectations of the Meteorological Department of high weather temperatures by the beginning of next August, the Ministry of Electricity is facing two critical weeks, during which electricity loads are expected to touch new record consumption levels, reports Al-Jarida daily. This has prompted the Ministry to appeal to consumers to adopt a rationalization policy during the peak season of consumption and heat, in order to avoid emergency outages as a result of increased loads. The MEW sources told the daily that the increase in each temperature is matched by an increase in loads exceeding 200 megawatts, pointing out that the expected consumption will not be more than 16,700 megawatts, while the production capacity exceeds 18,000 megawatts.

This means that things will remain under control especially since the maximum load recorded by the index during the current summer was 16,370 megawatts. The sources expect the summer peak to end on August 15, and explained that the ministry appeals to reduce loads to save fuel consumption used in production, and reduce the burdens and costs of annual maintenance of power production units.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy confirmed on Saturday that what was being published in some social media about shutting down air conditioners in some schools and government agencies and cutting off electricity in industrial areas, chalets, and farms is inaccurate. The ministry said in a statement that the routine emergency plan is implemented annually before the summer season and takes into account all possible scenarios for providing alternatives when need be.

The ministry continues the awareness campaigns to save electricity and water, reduce waste in consumption, and preserve and sustain the country’s resources through the optimal use of them.

According to the Al-Ajairi Scientific Center, the summer season will end on July 16, coinciding with the start of the second Gemini season, which will last 13 days.

In a statement to Kuwait News Agency, the center stated that the second period of Gemini seasons is the hottest period of the summer. It is therefore known as "Ahura summer" due to its peak heat and hot northern winds at its end.

As explained by the center, the highest temperatures will occur during the second Gemini season, which is the fourth house of the summer season for Arabs of the Badia and the fifth house in the solar and lunar calendar.

As mentioned by the center, this season is characterized by strong toxic winds, even during the night, and periods of humidity that last until the end of July, as well as a rise in temperatures.

During the second Gemini season, daylight hours extend to more than 13 hours and 36 minutes, and night hours to over 10 hours and 24 minutes.

The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Interior, Lieutenant General Anwar Al- Barjas, said the biometric fingerprint project provides a database for everyone who lives in Kuwait provided he/she is 18 years old and above, reports Al-Qabas daily. In this regards the Public Relations and Security Media Department of the ministry said in a press release following an inspection tour by Lieutenant General Al-Barjas to a number of biometric fingerprint centers, to determine the level of performance, speed of completion, and facilitation and facilitation for citizens and residents that the work on new biometric fingerprint efficient and smooth.

Lieutenant General Al-Barjas conveyed to the employees of the General Department of Criminal Evidence, who are in charge of the project, the greetings and appreciation of the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Acting Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal Al-Khalid. Lieutenant General Al-Barjas affirmed the keenness of Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled to harness all capabilities and overcoming all obstacles in front of citizens and residents to facilitate their obtaining a biometric fingerprint.

He explained, “There are no impediments to traveling without taking a biometric fingerprint,” stressing that it is applied only during the return to the country. He added that the General Department of Criminal Evidence has taken all measures to facilitate arrivals and its readiness to complete the fingerprint for them, expressing his thanks and appreciation to those in charge of implementing development and modernization plans in the security sectors and upgrading the level of services provided to the public. About 3 weeks after its implementation at the ports, security sources confirmed that the new security system works efficiently and smoothly in the context of the development plan, noting the adoption of an integrated plan to keep pace with the momentum of summer travel and avoid overcrowding.

A wave of thunderstorms and dust storms is approaching, according to the Meteorological Department. The weather conditions are anticipated to cause a significant decrease in horizontal visibility to less than 1000 meters, and in some areas, visibility may be completely obscured due to the presence of dust. The adverse weather conditions will be accompanied by strong and active winds, with speeds exceeding 60 km/h, reports Al-Rai Daily.

As reduced visibility can pose significant risks to drivers and pedestrians, it is crucial to take appropriate safety precautions. It is recommended to stay updated on weather forecasts and follow local authorities' instructions or guidelines.

In order to regulate and monitor the operations of private pharmacies inspection campaigns will persist in the sector. The primary objective is to verify the adherence of license holders to the provisions of the Profession Practice Law 28/1996, as amended by Law 30/2016.

The sources emphasized the continuous coordination between the Ministries of Commerce and Health to address violations related to the unauthorized management of numerous pharmacies by individuals who are not the license holders. Such actions are clear infringements upon the laws governing the practice of the profession.

It is anticipated that the number of pharmacies facing closure will exceed 100 within the coming weeks, considering the violations that have been identified thus far and the sustained inspection efforts.

It is worth noting that the Ministry of Health has already closed 40 pharmacies during the past and current week as part of their regulatory measures.

Secretary General of the Supreme Planning and Development Council Dr. Khaled Mahdi said on Wednesday that Kuwait is continuously seeking to overhaul legislation’s concerning expatriate workers with the aspiration to set up “a smart system” to regulate bringing in the foreign laborers. Mahdi, in a statement marking launch of the report of the 2023 International Development Bank, indicated that mechanisms would be set up to test professional skills of the workers that would be allowed into the country.

Notions incorporated in the aspired strategy include specifying areas where the workers are highly needed with priority for building a lucrative work environment for the citizens namely the young Kuwaitis who should be employed in the private sector. A planned online platform will screen potential employed workers from abroad to ensure the newcomers are qualified to perform the job chosen for them. “It does not make sense that a truck driver in his home country turns into an engineer in the host state!,” he sarcastically remarked alluding to some of such cases. He called for establishing an agency for hiring the foreign expatriates in the private sector.

Meanwhile, member of the national human rights diwan, Dr. Abdulredha Asiri said in a separate statement that the department advocates protecting rights of citizens and expatriates. The resident representative of the World Bank in Kuwait, Ghassan Al- Khojeh, indicated that authorities of the expatriates’ home countries should have well-studied systems to regulate dispatch of laborers to work abroad. The head of the International Migration Organization in Kuwait, Mazen Abulhessen, said recommendations incorporated in the report are in harmony with the international convention for migration and the IMO strategy for the Gulf. (KUNA)

The electrical load index jumped to 14,250 megawatts on Monday, the highest since the beginning of this summer, as a result of the rise in temperature. According to reports, the temperature on Monday reached 43 degrees Celsius.

To strengthen the electrical and water network in the country, coordinated efforts are being made to launch the northern Khairan and Al-Zour power stations.

In addition to producing 1800 megawatts of electricity, the Khairan station will also produce 33 million gallons of desalinated water per day. The second and third phases of the Al-Zour plant will produce 2700 megawatts of energy, and 120 million gallons of desalinated water.

The Chairperson of the Board of Directors has urged the Director General of the Public Authority for Food and Nutrition, Dr. Reem Al-Fulaij, and the Director General of Kuwait Municipality to take action in canceling the sale of live poultry in shops located in residential areas. The aim is to prioritize the licensing of exhibitions for the sale of frozen chicken only, with the goal of safeguarding public health and ensuring consumer safety.

A letter from the Food and Nutrition Authority to the Kuwait Municipality,revealed the ongoing correspondence with the Ministry of Social Affairs regarding the cancellation of selling live poultry in stores, reports Al Qabas. The suggestion is to limit the licensing of exhibitions for the sale of frozen chicken, as the responsibility for identifying investment activities in cooperative societies within central markets and their affiliated branches in residential areas falls under the jurisdiction of the Kuwait Municipality, as per a decision issued by the Municipal Council.

The decision to cancel the activity of selling live poultry and focus solely on licensing exhibitions for selling chilled chicken is based on the need to preserve public health and consumer safety. This decision comes after testimonies from the Director of the Slaughterhouses Department and the Deputy Director General for Inspection and Control Affairs, as well as a legal opinion issued by the Legal Affairs Department. An official letter from the Ahmadi slaughterhouse highlighted the damages and disadvantages associated with shops selling, slaughtering, and processing live poultry in residential areas.

The Food and Nutrition Authority emphasized the importance of taking prompt measures in line with public interest and consumer safety. However, the implementation of the decision is contingent upon the approval of the Kuwait Municipality.

Further meetings and discussions between officials from the Food Authority and the municipality will be conducted to devise an appropriate mechanism for achieving the objectives of the decision and ensuring consumer health. The fate of this initiative will be determined in the coming days, depending on the approval or postponement by the Kuwait Municipality.

This proposal has not yet been communicated to the owners of companies and shops selling poultry in separate areas. If implemented, it will determine the fate of shops selling live chickens in residential, investment, and other areas, although further study and discussions will be held regarding the application of the decision.

The Ministry of Justice has notified the public that the message spread on some social media platforms about the need for citizens to complete the travel declaration transaction for domestic workers in the Documentation Department if they are traveling with the workers is incorrect, reports Al-Rai daily. The ministry stressed that Kuwaitis are not required to complete such a transaction in case they intend to travel with the domestic workers under their sponsorship.

According to reliable sources, the security committee formed by the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Acting Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled to review the transactions completed in the Residence Affairs Sector during the last period discovered 400 unarchived transactions in the Jahra Residency Department, reports Aljarida daily. They explained that members of the committee, which included officers from the Department of Counterfeiting and Forgery Crimes affiliated to the General Department of Criminal Investigation and officers from the Residence Sector, also uncovered cases of embezzlement of ministry stamps and fines resulting from transactions. They were completed by computer, and no archive was found for them in the administration building.

This meant there has been manipulation in collecting fees or in estimating the number of expatriate workers for citizens and Gulf nationals. The committee also revealed the presence of a female employee of the Jahra Residence Department with residence permits of seven men registered in her name, despite not owning a home. Even if she met the conditions, she would have been granted only a driver and a servant. It was also discovered that another female employee registered in her name five drivers, even though she is married to a citizen and is not allowed to issue work visas under her own name. The committee concluded that there are extensions granted to the visit visas of expatriates of various nationalities, as well as to commercial visit visas that exceed the validity.

Also, they discovered that a Gulf citizen registered in his name seven Bangladeshi expatriates, and their fees have not been collected. The sources affirmed that the committee submitted its report to the First Deputy Prime Minister to refer 20 employees, including officers of various ranks, in the Jahra Residency Department to the investigation authorities, after all the illegally completed transactions were documented, and violations committed by male and female employees were documented by increasing the number of migrant workers registered under their names.

Al-Anba daily reports that the General Administration of Execution makes great efforts in implementing judgments and protecting public money in the administrations of the various governorates and Kuwait International Airport. Meanwhile, the daily continues to publish details of the annual statistics prepared by the Statistics and Research Department of the Information Technology and Statistics Sector at the Ministry of Justice, including the efforts of the General Administration of Implementation of the Ministry of Justice. According to statistics of the Ministry of Justice, 140,005 citizens and residents were prevented from traveling during 2022.

Kuwait Airport Office had the largest share of the travel ban, with 36,145 citizens and residents banned from traveling through Kuwait Airport, according to the statistics. With 28,251 citizens and residents banned from travel, the Capital Governorate had the highest number, followed by Farwaniya Governorate, with 25390 residents and citizens banned from traveling. Al-Jahra Governorate came third in terms of the number of those banned from traveling, with 17,112 citizens and residents, followed by Hawalli Governorate, with 14,495.

With 13,759 people banned from traveling, Al-Ahmadi Governorate ranked second, while Mubarak Al-Kabeer Governorate ranked third with 4,853 people banned from traveling. With regard to the implementation of family courts, the number of those banned from traveling reached 6075 citizens and residents due to family court cases.

There are 1448 citizens and residents in Hawalli Governorate, while there are 1129 citizens and residents in Al-Ahmadi Governorate who are prohibited from traveling. In order of number of citizens and residents banned from travel, Jahra governorate had 1077, Farwaniya governorate had 947, the capital had 878, and Mubarak Al-Kabeer governorate had 596.

The Director of the General Department of Criminal Evidence, Major General Eid Al-Owaihan, said the biometric fingerprint project was a dream of the Ministry of Interior, and it has been achieved on the ground, indicating that the project will contribute to setting up a database for everyone who lives in Kuwait and is 18 years old and above; whether for citizens or residents, where previously there was only the decimal fingerprint, while the biometric fingerprint will activate all information and help verify the identity of each individual, reports Al-Rai daily.

During the first 10 days of the Ministry of Interior starting to take biometric fingerprints for citizens and residents, whether for those arriving at the border crossings or those visiting the centers designated for that, Major General Al-Owaihan said, about 100,000 fingerprints were taken, with expectations of an increase in the frequency of fingerprinting, after increasing the number of centers, and moving to open other centers, so that achieving the goal set by the Ministry to fingerprint all citizens and residents within a year.

Interview
Al-Owaihan said, in an interview with “Al-Rai”, that the Ministry of Interior has prepared an integrated plan that will contribute significantly to the success of this project, by opening 4 centers dedicated to taking fingerprints, and will work to increase them to provide the opportunity for the largest possible number of auditors to take fingerprints, indicating that it is possible to make a prior appointment for fingerprinting through the “Meta” platform and the Ministry of Interior’s website, and that there are instructions by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled and the Undersecretary of the Ministry, Lieutenant General Anwar Al-Barjas, to harness all capabilities and overcome all obstacles in this regard.

He confirmed that work on the old fingerprint is still underway to arrest the perpetrators, remove fingerprints from the crime scene, and arrest violators of the residence law, and explained that with the new fingerprint, the data of the perpetrators or wanted persons will be activated so that they are identified.

The Public Authority for Manpower is currently working on a plan to enable expatriate workers who are registered in companies and establishments whose files has been closed in recent times to transfer their residency to other companies.

These files were ultimately closed due to a lack of a clearly defined automatic procedure for them. However, considering the humanitarian circumstances, it has been decided to allow the transfer of these workers. The condition is that their files must be “cleared” of workers by July this year.

The transfer process will be subject to specific regulations and conditions. Notably, the transfer will only be permitted to valid files with other companies, reports Al Jarida. Additionally, workers will be allowed to transfer from one file to another if more than 12 months have passed since their work permit was issued with the closed/suspended company.

For workers employed by companies holding licenses for small and medium enterprises, it is emphasized that a minimum of 3 years must elapse from the issuance of the work permit as a requirement for transferring their employment. The final decision to accept or reject the transfer will be made accordingly.

These measures taken by the Public Authority for Manpower aim to address the circumstances faced by expatriate workers affected by the suspension of companies. By facilitating their transfer to other companies, consideration is given to their individual situations and the necessity to ensure their welfare.

Al-Qabas daily reports that the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) has added two new indicators to the section on population and labor force indicators on its website. In a press statement recently, the authority explained that the first indicator highlights the Kuwaiti population growth rate according to various years.

The second indicator shows the rate of growth of non-Kuwaitis over the years, with the possibility of identifying specific nationalities.

The PACI explained that, based on the most recent indicators, Kuwaiti population has increased by 939,000. The total number of systems registered in 1990 was 578,511. The total registered until last year was 1.5 million.

Kuwaiti individuals in private families have decreased from 6.44 in 1995 to 4.60 in 2020, decelerated from 6.44 in 1995. Kuwaiti private families have increased to 313,000.

Kuwaitis increased by 28,700 as of the end of last year. The annual increase rate ranged between 25 and 32 thousand people, with the exception of 1993, which witnessed an annual increase estimated at 78,9000 people.

At the end of last year, there were 4.7 million residents, of whom 3.2 million were expatriates, and 32 percent were citizens. PACI has 1.5 million citizens.

They constitute the largest number among the total number of communities in the country, with nine communities controlling the highest presence among the population.

A total of 2.056 million workers are employed in the Kuwaiti market, 24 percent are employed by the government, and 76 percent are employed by the private sector. About 77.2 percent of Kuwaitis contribute to work in the government sector, followed by expatriates in the government sector with Egyptians at 7.9 percent, followed by Indians, Saudis, Bangladeshis, Syrians, Pakistanis, Jordanians, Filipinos, and then Nepalese.” As for the private sector, the Indian community constitutes the highest percentage with 30 percent, followed by Egyptians, Bangladeshis, Kuwaitis, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Nepalese, Syrians, Jordanians, and Saudis. In PACI's study, the percentage of workers compared to the total population was 43 percent.

Kuwait had the lowest contribution from the tourism sector to the GDP among Gulf Cooperation Council countries, according to a recent study, with an average contribution of 6.1% to the GDP, compared with 10.8% in the UAE, 9.8% in Bahrain, 9.7% in Qatar, 9.4% in Saudi Arabia, and 6.8% in Oman.

Kuwaitis spend more than 4 billion dinars ($14 billion) on foreign tourism each year, or about 11% of their gross domestic product. Al-Qabas daily reports that the country's tourism revenues do not exceed the level of 300 thousand dinars per year, according to the study, prepared by the Tourism Enterprises Company and recently reviewed by the Council of Ministers.

Tourism projects have finished drawing out the outline for the establishment of an entertainment city that would yield a viable economic return for the government. Approximately 200 million dinars will be required to implement the project, 120 million of which will be capital expenditures, and 80 million will be infrastructure expenditures, with an exploitation period of 50 years instead of 3 years needed for its implementation.

Approximately 85 million dinars will be contributed to GDP by the project in 2035, about 4 thousand new jobs will be created, and 900 thousand people will visit the entertainment city by 2030, assuming that the internal rate of return is between 11% and 13%, assuming a 50-year lease term is assumed.

According to the study, the government has two options for implementing the project:

- A legislative amendment to the State Property Law that the period of offering to exploit the site be 50 years or more, and then it is possible to achieve an internal return of 15%, so that it is attractive to investors in the private sector.

- Injecting the value of the capital required by the state (building and then contracting with an international operator), noting that Wafra Real Estate Company has expressed its desire to invest in the project.

The new entertainment city will include the following sections:
- Amusement parks
- Sports courts
- Hotel
- Water Park
- Sheikh Zayed Park
- Bird watching area
- Forest huts
- Retail and restaurant area
- Picnic area
- Electronic games hall

The First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior and Acting Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal Al-Khaled has issued instructions to not renew the residency of an Egyptian couple and their six children and to grant them temporary residency until the end of the academic year, after which they are to be deported, reports Al-Anba daily. He took this decision after receiving a report from the community authorities about domestic disputes between the couple, which led the husband to leave his wife and six children, and stay with one of his friends without leaving any means of sustenance for his family. It reached such an extent that two of his children would take turns going to school in order to take care of an infant who is less than three months old.

According to a security source, one of the children called the Operations Room of the Ministry of Interior, and said her parents left her with her five siblings without food and that they were hungry and did not find anything to eat for two days. The Assistant Undersecretary for Public Security Affairs at the Ministry of Interior Major General Abdullah Al-Rajeeb was immediately informed. He issued instructions that the six children be taken to the police station and provided with meals.

The community authorities, who took care of the children, were notified, and the father was summoned. He revealed that he was unemployed as he had been laid off from work and had financial problems, which resulted in disputes with his wife and was eventually forced to leave the marital home four months ago and stay with his friend. He affirmed that he is committed to the expenses of his children, revealing that he pays the tuition fees and the transportation fees for the bus that takes them to and from their school. As for the mother, she said she was no longer able to take care of the children as she had nothing to spend on them, and so she went to stay with her friend.