The quarterly statistics of the payment balances for the second quarter of this year issued by the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) showed that Kuwaiti spending on travel fell sharply to KD81.7 million compared to KD1.19 billion dinars during the first quarter of this year, which was due to the threat of the coronavirus pandemic and the closure of the Kuwait International Airport (KIA), as part of the precautionary measures taken by the government to prevent the spread of the epidemic, like all countries of the world.
During the first half of the year (January-June), the total Kuwaiti spending on travel amounted to KD1.27 billion during the period, compared to KD2.9 billion during the first half of 2019, a decrease of 56.2%.
In an analysis of these figures, it becomes clear that there are expenditures for students studying abroad and on funds for medical treatment, but that makes up a small percentage of the total spent on tourism, entertainment, flights, visas outside the country, official duties and participation in conferences and workshops abroad.