Kuwait

Country Profile: Kuwait

Executive Summary

Kuwait has spent more than $5 billion to repair oil infrastructure damaged during the its war with Iraq between 1990 and 1991. Long term rises in global oil prices has allowed the state to maintain a steady source of income. Government expenditures have steadily increased, giving rise to a healthily funded public sector. It is the private sector that the state characteristically neglects, with a 2010 reform measure finally attempting to expand the reach of Kuwait’s economy beyond merely petroleum. Since 2006, the Amir has dissolved the National Assembly on five occasions and reshuffled the cabinet 12 times, usually citing political stagnation and gridlock between the legislature and the government. The immense power of the Amir over the state has, despite the legal ramifications of doing so, led many citizens and MPs to call his authority into question.

Brief History

Kuwait was nominally a province of the Ottoman Empire, ruled from Constantinople from the 16th century until the latter part of the 19th century. The ruling Kuwaiti al-Sabah dynasty then entered into an agreement with Great Britain, which effectively established Kuwait as an autonomous British protectorate. Britain oversaw foreign relations and defense for Kuwait from 1899 until independence in 1961. Kuwait's sovereignty was critically threatened when Iraq invaded and occupied the state in August of 1990, claiming that Kuwait was harming Iraq economically by refusing to reduce its oil production. Following several weeks of aerial bombardment, a US-led, UN coalition began a ground assault in February 1991 that liberated Kuwait in four days.

The al-Sabah family has ruled since returning to power in 1991 and established an elected legislature that in recent years has become increasingly assertive.

Political Structure

Political Parties: None; while the formation of political parties is not permitted, they are not forbidden by law.

Political System: Kuwait is a constitutional emirate with a unicameral legislature, the National Assembly. Of the 65 seats, 50 are elected by popular vote, and the remainder are cabinet ministers chosen by the head of government, the prime minister. The cabinet of the prime minister, the Council of Ministers, must be approved by the amir, who is the chief of state. The position of amir is hereditary, never subject to elections. The amir is responsible for appointing the prime minister and deputy prime ministers.

Political Conflicts: Stateless Arabs, known as bidoon, staged small protests in February and March 2011 amid the 2010-11 uprisings and protests across the Arab world. Demands of demonstrators included the granting of citizenship, jobs, and other benefits available to Kuwaiti nationals. Youth activist groups, supported by opposition legislators and the prime minister's rivals within the ruling family, rallied repeatedly in 2011 for an end to corruption and the expulsion of the prime minister and his cabinet. Opposition legislators forced the prime minister to resign in late 2011.

Economic Structure

Economic System: Though Kuwait’s relatively open economy is geographically small, it is robust thanks to its crude oil reserves of about 102 billion barrels. Kuwait is home to roughly 7% of world oil reserves. Thus, petroleum accounts for nearly half of GDP. Export revenue are virtually entirely dependent on oil as well, with levels hovering at 95% of all exports. Oil constitutes an identical percentage of of government income.

Economic Trends: In 2010, Kuwait passed an economic development plan that pledges to spend up to $130 billion over five years to diversify the economy away from oil, attract more investment, and boost private sector participation in the economy. Kuwaiti officials have also committed to increasing oil production to 4 million barrels per day by 2020.

Economic Resources: Industrial focus in Kuwait is on petroleum, petrochemicals, cement, shipbuilding and repair, water desalination, food processing, and construction materials. Exports consist of oil and refined products as well as fertilizers.

Social Structure

Religion:

Muslim: 1,723,800 adherents (87.43% of population)
Christian: 161,082 adherents (8.17% of population)
Hindu: 49,291 adherents (2.50% of population)
Non-religious/other: 21,688 adherents (1.10% of population)
Baha’i: 9,858 adherents (0.50% of population)
Buddhist: 5,915 adherents (0.30% of population)

Churches:

Catholic (46,584 members)
Coptic Orthodox (31,579 members)
National Evangelical (1,250 members)
Independent (2,778 members)
Armenian Apostolic (2,564 members)
Greek Orthodox (2,244 members)
Syrian Orthodox (1,366 members)
Mar Thoma Syrian (1,242 members)
Melkite Greek Catholic (1,111 members)
Pentecostal Churches (974 members)
Other denominations (689 members)

Ethnicity:

Kuwaiti 45%
Other Arab 35%
South Asian 9%
Iranian 4%
Other 7%

Gender:

Overall male population: 1,609,113 (59.7%)
Overall female population: 1,086,203 (40.3%)
0-14 years: 25.6% (male 358,415/female 330,467)
15-24 years: 15.4% (male 228,147/female 187,035)
25-54 years: 52.3% (male 896,693/female 514,196)
55-64 years: 4.5% (male 70,863/female 51,660)
65 years and over: 2.1% (male 27,995/female 29,845) (2013 est.)

Urbanization:

Urban population: 98% of total population (2010)
Rate of urbanization: 2.1% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.)
Children under the age of 5 underweight: 1.7% (2009)

Operating Organizations

Political Groups: Islamists; merchants; political groups; secular liberals and pro-governmental deputies; Shia activists; tribal groups

Terrorist Groups: The Generation of Arab Fury and the United Arab Revolution are two formerly active terror groups that have since been disbanded.

Allies and Enemies

Regional Allies: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey
Regional Enemies: N/A
Global Allies: France, Russia, United States, United Kingdom
Global Enemies: N/A

Country Trajectory

On the economic front, Kuwait is fortunate in that rise in global oil prices is driving substantial government consumption and economic growth. Public sector employees will continue to benefit from increases in budget revenue in the form of increased pay. It is specifically because of the extreme profitability of the oil sector that Kuwait has previously made little effort to diversify the economy. Further stifling diversification is the executive branch, which frequently hinders the progress of economic reforms from the National Assembly. Undeterred, Kuwait in 2010 passed a $130 billion economic plan to diversify the economy away from oil, attract more investment, and boost private sector participation in the economy.

Suppression from the Amir is not limited to economic policies. Social media has come under intense scrutiny since the start of the Arab Spring. Since the Arab Spring uprisings, Kuwaiti authorities have sharply stepped up pressure on social media posts that they consider offensive to leaders or threatening to state security. In 2013 alone, dozens of individuals have come under arrest for expressing dissident views towards the rule of Amir Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah.

Current Events

December 12th, 2012: Kuwaiti MPs this week approved a law with a death penalty for Muslims who curse God, the Koran, all prophets and the wives of Islam's Prophet Mohammed. Defendants who repent in court will be spared capital punishment but will get a jail sentence for five years and a fine of $36,000 or one of them, while repentance by those who repeat the crime is not acceptable, the bill says.

http://www.secularism.org.uk/news/2012/12/kuwait-introduces-death-penalty-for-cursing-god-and-prophets

January 16th, 2013: Kuwait's Constitutional Court ordered the dissolution of parliament on Sunday and called for fresh elections. The court made its ruling after throwing out opposition challenges to changes to the electoral system decreed by the Amir. He has reduced the number of votes allowed per citizen in parliamentary elections from four to one.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/16/us-kuwait-court-ruling-idUSBRE95F04320130616

February 3rd, 2013: Kuwait’s lower court has sentenced an opposition youth activist to five years in jail "with immediate effect" for insulting the emir on Twitter, a rights group said. Criticising the emir is illegal in Kuwait and is considered a state security charge. Those convicted of the offence face up to five years in jail.

http://www.news.com.au/technology/kuwait-jails-youth-for-five-years-for-insulting-emir-on-twitter/story-e6frfro0-1226568188919

March 31st, 2013: The director of the Kuwait Society for Human Rights, Mohammad al-Humaidi, says a lower court sentenced online activist Hamed al-Khaledi on Sunday to two years in jail for insulting the country's emir. Al-Khaledi can appeal.

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/kuwait-online-activist-jailed-twitter-posts

May 30th, 2013: Musallam al-Barrak, a former Kuwaiti MP, was sentenced in April 2013 to five years in prison for saying to the Amir, "We will not allow you, your highness, to take Kuwait into the abyss of autocracy." In response, several thousand Kuwaitis gathered in front of a prison at the edge of the city to protest. There were warning shots, tear gas and injuries. Barrak has been out on bail since.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/a-citizens-protest-movement-builds-in-kuwait-a-902495.html

Sources