KUWAIT: March 8th is the day when the world pays attention to the achievements and initiatives of women, empower them, protects their rights and all forms of violence, discrimination and extortion, and proposing laws to protect their basic rights of all kinds, reports Al-Qabas daily. Kuwaiti women, along with their counterparts around the world, celebrate this day as official local statistics indicate an increase in the frequency of crimes committed against women in the country in the recent period, in which the lives of many victims were claimed, while the security services recorded, in the past year, about 1,500 cases of violence and extorting against female victims.

Activists, lawyers and social workers, spoke at length on the extent that the country’s women have achieved in order to protect their social, economic and political rights and preserve their physical and moral integrity.
They said that it is also difficult to deny Kuwait’s progress in the field of protecting women, with the issuance of the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence, but they called the law “lame, walking on one foot, as long as its executive regulations have not yet been issued.” They demanded the need to speed up the issuance of the relevant executive regulations, to ensure the integration of the application of the aforementioned law and stressed on the importance of activating the role of the Center for Shelter for Abused Women. Counselor and lawyer, Azraa Al-Rifai, praised the issuance of the Domestic Violence Law, and said that the situation of battered women after its issuance “has become more positive, from a legal point of view, but our ambition is still greater than that,” calling for “activating the role of judicial enforcement in domestic violence cases.”

The social activist Asrar Hayat, enumerated different forms of violence against women in society, and talked about “another form” of violence practiced against her, but not much light is shed on it, which is “electronic violence.” Hayat said that this type of violence, which is termed as “cyberbullying,” has increased in frequency with the steady increase in the use of social media, indicating that its risks may lead its victims to depression, isolation, and even suicide.
Violation
Head of the Supreme Council for Community Rights at the Lawyers Association, Attorney Mona Al-Arbash said the “domestic violence” law is good but lamented the lack of executive regulation and called for ways to educate society about the dangers of domestic violence, stressing the importance of accelerating the issuance of the executive regulations of the Domestic Violence Law.
Six urgent demands to prevent violation against women include expediting the issuance of the executive regulations of the Domestic Violence Law; husbands and brothers not use the law as a pretext to plunder women; increasing shelters for battered women and opening new ones for men; Drafting a law that limits ‘cyberbullying’ to which women are exposed; activating the role of the judicial police in cases of domestic violence and training female workers in the field of abused women to deal with their cases

KUWAIT: The Public Authority for Manpower has recently introduced new provisions to make it easier for expats aged 60 or above, without university degrees, to obtain work permits. This includes allowing them to transfer to the private sector in case their employment relationship with the government sector ends, or they wish to move due to family or other types of residency circumstances. This change is expected to benefit around 8,000 residents.

According to Aseel Al-Mazyad, Director of the Public Relations and Media Department at the authority, amendments have been made to some of the rules and procedures for granting work permits to residents over 60 years old, reports Al Qabas. The new provisions now allow those expats who hold residency in some government and other sectors to transfer to the private sector, including individuals working in the government, public sector and institutions, dependent/family visas, investors or foreign partners in commercial or industrial activities, and expats under the rule of Article 24 of the executive regulations of the Foreigners’ Residence Law.

Al-Mazyad assured that the authority will continue to enforce its existing decisions, including the prohibition of transferring expatriate workers from certain sectors, such as prohibition of transferring domestic workers to the private sector.
According to Aseel Al-Mazyed, the Board of Directors of the Authority has approved that workers mentioned earlier can renew or transfer their work permit under the conditions stated in Article 37 before the amendment, with the same previous requirements, which include:

• An annual additional fee of 250 dinars for a work permit
• Possession of an irrevocable comprehensive health insurance policy
• With the exception of the same categories that were previously excluded from the drawing, they are the husbands and children of Kuwaiti women, wives of Kuwaitis, and Palestinians who hold documents.

KUWAIT: The US Air Force has awarded a contract valued at $70 million to Boeing for the provision of critical general logistics support for Kuwaiti pilots on the F/A-18E/F fighter jet, reports Al-Qabas daily. The deal supports the entry of F/A- 18E/F into Kuwait Armed Forces as a strike fighter designed for traditional strike operations and air support.

The country previously used the aircraft for homeland defense, but it is now phasing out its fleet of Hornet F/A-18C and F/A- 18D aircraft. The project includes general logistics support, logistics program management and logistics support for the aircraft during pilot training with Sniper advanced targeting pods (ATPs).

It will be implemented for three years and it will help improve targeting capabilities. According to the US Air Force, this contract will develop the ability of Kuwait to face regional threats, as well as protect its borders and major infrastructure. The Kuwait Defense Market 2022-2027 report of Global Data revealed that the Kuwaiti government will host one of the largest US military airbases in the Middle East at a projected cost of $32 million.

The construction of the new Cargo City will enable Kuwait to enhance the operational effectiveness of its military and promote security and stability throughout the country. The 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, which lasted for almost seven months, prompted Kuwait to focus on developing a robust defense capability. Since then, the country has been using its oil and gas export revenues to fund defense procurements, the report added. Meanwhile, the military fixed-wing market forecast of Kuwait is valued at $496 million, but is projected to reach $1 billion by 2026 as per the Global Military Fixed-Wing Aircraft Market Forecast 2023-2033 of Global Data.

KUWAIT: According to the global traffic index “TomTom Traffic Index”, covering a distance of 10 km in Kuwait takes an average of 12 and a half minutes, the average speed during rush hour is 44 km/h, and a motorist spends 106 hours every year in rush hour, reports Al-Rai daily. This index measures the average level of congestion on the world’s roads. Kuwait City was ranked 273 globally, 30 among Asian countries, and 8th in the Arab world in the traffic index, making it among the least crowded cities in the world.

The annual “TomTom Traffic Index” stated that the Maps and Technology Service Department of the index issued the “Annual Global Traffic Index” which showed that driving a car in most cities in the world is a very expensive process.

According to the index, London continues to be the worst city to travel within by car, taking an average of 36 minutes to cover a distance of 10 kilometers, which is nearly two minutes more than the previous year.

The Indian city of Bengaluru ranked second with an average time of 29 minutes to cover the same distance. New York City appeared for the first time as the first American city on the index list. It ranked 19th with an average time of 24.5 minutes to travel a distance of 10 km. Cities such as Washington, San Francisco, Boston and Chicago came in close ranks.

On the other hand, the city of Orlando came in a good position with a time of 10 minutes and 20 seconds to cover the same distance. Oklahoma recorded the shortest time, which is 8.4 minutes. Covering 389 cities across 56 countries on six continents, TomTom Traffic Index ranks cities around the world by their average travel times and provides free access to city-by-city information.

This year, the index included the financial impact of rising fuel costs and congestion due to traffic, along with the fuel/ kWh consumption and CO2 emissions when driving petrol, diesel or BEV cars across all 389 cities. Now in its 12th year, this edition of the TomTom Traffic Index provides more insights than ever before, helping fleet managers, city planners, carmakers, policymakers and drivers tackle traffic-related challenges, make informed mobility decisions, and steer towards a better future.

KUWAIT: An Amiri Decree was issued on Sunday assigning His Highness Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah as Prime Minister of the State of Kuwait Government. Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al- Ahmad was also asked to immediately implement the order and form the new government, according to the Amiri Diwan statement. Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf Al- Ahmad must inform the National Assembly about the order and issuing it in the official Gazette. (KUNA)

KUWAIT: In many modern cities, cars are necessary to get around easily. Kuwait has a strong car culture and is known for its love of high-end luxury cars. The country has one of the highest per capita car ownership rates in the world, where passenger cars per 1,000 people reached 445 vehicles in 2019, according to the Central Statistical Bureau, with Kuwait ranking 29th among 135 countries.

Car culture is a significant part of Kuwaiti society. However, traffic jams are still a major issue in certain parts of the country, especially during rush hours. Although public transportation is available, it is considered inconvenient and a social stigma by many.
Jassim Al-Awadhi
Founder of Kuwait Commute Jassim Al-Awadhi, who promotes an initiative to bring awareness about the public transportation system and the overall unpleasant traffic situation in Kuwait, told Kuwait Times: “Public transportation has many benefits. It reduces arrival time, reduces accidents and makes people focus more on the road, as well as increasing natural traffic.”

Awadhi said people must demand a better transportation system. “We must create proper public transportation. People suffer in some areas where there is no public transportation service, as the bus network is not expanding and does not reach many areas,” he said. “Usually on the GPS, the distance is faster by car than the bus, but GPS does not count the time taken to find parking spots amid the current parking crisis, as it may take time to search for car parks in Kuwait City,” explaining the bus takes 35 minutes to reach its destination and the car takes 20 minutes. But while the bus arrives exactly after 35 minutes, the car trip takes longer to conclude.

Awadhi affirmed the new generation are the ones who demand better public transportation. “One of them told me that transportation is more comfortable and better and is stress-free, as the pressure of driving and the time spent for obtaining a driving license cause inconvenience,” he said. “When people experience public transportation with me, they are always surprised by the cleanliness of the buses, and it exceeds their expectations,” he added.

During the survey of the ‘Kuwait Commute’ initiative, Awadhi noted there are a lot of people willing to accept the use of public transportation, as 2,179 people interacted with the questionnaire consisting of 17 questions and 1,210 followers commented on the topic. In 2022, there was an increase in the number of vehicles, reaching 2,422,223, with total valid driving licenses reaching 1,655,408.