NEW DELHI: An investment of $20 billion is expected to be made in the next 10 years to develop and modernize civil aviation sector in Kuwait, a senior Kuwaiti official said. President of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah made that statement as he presented a paper in a ministerial session titled 'Connecting the World' featured at the Global Aviation Summit - 2019. Kuwait is participating in the event, which is being held in the Indian financial capital of Mumabi to share best experiences in the field and discuss ways of enhanced cooperation in civil aviation.

Sheikh Salman also said that in order to increase the capacity of Kuwait International Airport and to improve services provided to passengers, a new passenger Terminal 4 (T4) was opened. The T4 can accommodate 4.5 million passengers annually. The new passenger Terminal 5, with a capacity of 2.2 million passengers annually, has also been opened. He added that Kuwait International Airport is currently undergoing a number of development projects, including the construction of a new passenger Terminal 2, which can accommodate 25 million passengers annually and the construction of a new third runway and a new observation tower in addition to the shipping city.

Indian Minister of Civil Aviation Suresh Prabhu opened the inaugural session, which was attended by Kuwait Ambassador to India Jassem Al-Najm and senior officials from Kuwait, in the presence of a number of foreign ministers and industry officials as well as President of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The summit is discussing latest developments in the air transport industry and ways to enhance joint cooperation in civil aviation.

The summit, co-hosted by the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Indian Airports Authority and the FICCI, aims to provide a platform to exchange experience in innovations and latest developments in air travel and discuss the challenges facing the aviation sector. Leaders from airlines, manufacturers, investors, vendors, cargo, space industry, banking institutions and skill development agencies are also represented in the summit. - KUNA