LONDON: Kuwait is one of the best investment destinations in the Gulf region, a British official said yesterday, urging companies and businessmen of Britain to carry out projects in this Gulf country. In a statement following participation in an economic seminar in London, CEO of Kuwait British Business Centre (KBBC) Martin Hall lauded Kuwait's positive changes, including legislations and legal frameworks, aiming to attract foreign investment.
He also commended the Law No. 116/2013 on direct foreign investment, and the role of the Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority (KDIPA) in removing obstacles facing foreign investors and companies targeting Kuwaiti markets. He referred to huge projects already carried out or to be launched in the future, in the fields of health, education, transport, infrastructure and others.
British firms can carry out small-sized enterprises as part of the major projects implemented by multinational corporations, Hall added. In this context, he noted that the Kuwaiti government launched in the first three months of 2016 a number of projects worth $4.8 billion, expecting that the total value of all projects will hit $35 billion by the end of the year.
Hall said that he always confirms to British businessmen that Kuwait is the best investment destination for British firms; especially as both Kuwait and Britain are keen on upgrading and promoting their distinguished relations. He pointed to the Memorandum of Understanding signed on Thursday between KDIPA and KBBC, stressing that it would contribute to attracting further companies to Kuwait.
He said he would do his best to stimulate British companies to transfer expertise to the Kuwaiti market and contribute to achieving the goals of development. The seminar briefed some representatives of British firms on Kuwait's development plans and available investment opportunities as well as legislations and laws in favor of foreign investors.
Memorandum
Director-General of Kuwait Direct Investment Promotion Authority (KDIPA) Sheikh Meshaal Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Thursday with Hall, concerned with boosting and facilitating the flow of British investments to Kuwait.
The Kuwait British Business Centre was a result of several meetings of the Kuwaiti-British joint steering committee to increase British investments in Kuwait, Sheikh Meshaal said in a statement. The MoU aims at encouraging British companies to take advantage of the new economic laws that the Kuwaiti government and parliament have adopted recently, he said.
The KDIPA chief also noted that the new Kuwaiti laws are part of a plan to diversify income sources and use less petroleum products in order to help the country achieve its goals. According to the MoU, KDIPA is to provide assistance to British companies that wish to invest directly in Kuwait through information and aid in various areas.
Earlier on Thursday, Kuwait's Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Suleiman Al-Jarallah and British Minister for the Middle East and North Africa Tobias Ellwood signed an action plan of a joint steering committee for the next six months seeking to activate all agreements inked between the two sides and discuss means of removing any possible obstacles. Furthermore, Jarallah announced following the meeting that the new electronic visa system has paved the way for some 12,000 Kuwaiti nationals to visit Britain during the last three months. - KUNA