25 key projects stalled as 16 government entities report zero spending

• Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority led the list of entities most committed to spending on projects, with its expenditure on two projects in its annual plan reaching 99.3%. The Public Authority for Sport ranked second, with spending on four projects in its annual plan also reaching 99.3%.

A government report from the General Secretariat for Planning and Development revealed that sixteengovernment entities with projects in the development plan had a ‘zero’ disbursement rate by the end of the 2023/2024 fiscal year. According to Al Qabas newspaper, these entities are responsible for approximately twenty five projects.

The report noted that the total number of government entities participating in the development program projects reached 42, with approximately 38.9% of these entities not spending a dinar on the projects.

Spending on projects

Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority led the list of entities most committed to spending on projects, with its expenditure on two projects in its annual plan reaching 99.3%. The Public Authority for Sport ranked second, with spending on four projects in its annual plan also reaching 99.3%.

The Ministry of Information came in third, spending 88.6% on two projects included in last year’s development plan. The General Authority for Roads and Land Transport achieved an expenditure rate of 84.7% for three projects in its annual plan, placing it fourth in terms of commitment to spending.

In fifth place, the Ministry of Public Works spent 78.9% on nine projects included in the development plan. The Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy, which has 19 projects in the development plan, spent 78.4%, ranking sixth in executive capacity, with a spending rate of 64.1%.

The Ministry of Health, which has eight projects in the development plan, ranked seventh, followed by the General Authority for Industry in eighth place, with a spending rate of 61.3% on one project included in last year’s development plan.

In ninth and tenth places were the Kuwait Research Institute and the General Directorate of Civil Aviation, with spending rates of 58.1% and 53.8%, respectively.

Public Authority for Housing Welfare

The budget for the Public Authority for Housing Welfare’s projects amounted to approximately KD 332.7 million, which was planned to be disbursed across six projects in the development plan. However, the actual expenditure on these six projects totaled KD 60.1 million, resulting in a spending rate of 18%.

13 delayed projects: A year without progress

Despite being included in the development plan for over a year, thirteen projects have yet to start, including six construction and seven developmental projects:

1. Educational, cultural and entertainment center project on Abdullah Al-Ahmad Street.
2. Al-Jahra Waterfront – Corniche (construction).
3. Treated water system in northern and southern regions for food security (construction).
4. Package No. 4: New government buildings, automatic systems, and cybersecurity for terminal T2 at Kuwait International Airport (construction).
5. Combined cycle gas turbine units, 3600 MW at Nuwaiseeb, Phase I (construction).
6. Supply and installation of a main conversion plant dedicated to the renewable energy project of Al-Shagaya (construction).
7. Restructuring of the postal sector in Kuwait (development).
8. Digital transformation of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry – Commercial Platform (development).
9. Development of the Northern Economic Zone, (development).
10. Unified data exchange platform for government entities (development).
11. Smart recruitment of skilled labor (development).
12. National framework for digital skills (development).
13. Strategic study on key concerns of the Ministry of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy (development).

Four key challenges hindering project implementation

A previous report highlighted several challenges preventing government agencies from executing projects effectively. The main obstacles are: administrative challenges, technical challenges, legislative challenges and financial challenges.