Kuwait bids to attract foreign investors

Kuwait's Amir Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah arrives at the Kuwait Investment Forum 2018 on Wednesday.

In a bid to diversify its economy and reduce reliance on oil, Kuwait has opened doors for investment opportunities to US, European, Chinese and Asian investors in its Northern Gulf Gateway, a project close to the Iraqi border.

This was revealed by government executives at the Kuwait Investment Forum 2018 (KIF 2018).

Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, Kuwait's First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence; Merza Hasan, executive director and dean of the board of executive directors, World Bank Group; Omar Kutayba Alghanim, CEO, Alghanim Industries and chairman, Gulf Bank Kuwait; Timothy Keating, executive vice-president of government operations, The Boeing Company, USA; and Noura Al Qabandi, director of international affairs and research department, Communication and Information Technology Regulatory Authority, Kuwait, addressed the session.

The panelists underlined the private sector's role in development, financing and investment. The Boeing Company announced that it would open its permanent office in Kuwait.

"Even if we develop just 20 per cent of the [Northern Gateway area], we could attract $150-$200 billion of FDI and boost Kuwait's GDP by an additional $220 billion," said Al Qabandi.

The development is also expected to create 300,000 to 400,000 knowledge-based jobs for youth and attract 3 to 5 million visitors annually, thereby opening new investment opportunities for the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors.

Al Sabah said: "We have chosen the Northern Gulf Gateway development not only as an economic catalyst but also to build a new geopolitical era. Connecting to the Belt Road Initiative, the development will have an airport, industries, a knowledge zone, leisure zone and educational zone. With Northern Gulf Gateway, Kuwait will be a catalyst in bringing together other countries in the region and across the world."

Alghanim said: "Our growth story has only begun; we are an open marketplace, the oldest democracy in the region, we have a healthy balance sheet and geographic location. There is no better time than now to be part of the Kuwait story. International corporations are opening office, and with our administrative and regulatory changes, we are open to global business. Since the inception of our SME Fund, more than $7 billion was set aside for them; such support doesn't happen in any other country."

Keating said: "The Middle East alone would need 63,000 pilots by 2035 as well as 69,000 technicians in addition to training to be offered for 100,000 crew. Such training partnerships are what we are looking at in Kuwait, so the young people here do not have to leave the country to be trained. We hope to add Kuwait to the list of our training centres as you have the right talent base and infrastructure here. We have about 50 employees now but watch the numbers grow."

Al Qabandi said: "Kuwait has led world relations, benefited humanity and assisted developing countries financially. We see the next big opportunity in the Northern region as an investment haven with resources, land and a central location. The project is directly aligned with Kuwait's advancement in connecting the world."

She gave details of the different zones that will include an educational hub; a centre for smart industry and future technologies and a port of 8 million TEU capacity; a financial hub with a stock exchange, and a touristic destination that also will feature a medical facility.

- business@khaleejtimes.com