10 Years of Failures Lead 'Al-Dorra for Labor' to Liquidation
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor submitted a recommendation to liquidate Al-Dorra for Labor Company due to heavy losses and repeated failure to achieve its goals since its establishment in 2016.
Translated by Qiyas from الجريدة — Original source
Ten years after the establishment of Al-Dorra Manpower Company, with none of its intended objectives achieved, Al-Jarida learned from its sources that the Ministry of Social Affairs has submitted a recommendation to the Council of Ministers requesting the liquidation of the company and the termination of its existence, amid massive financial losses incurred since its inception with no tangible benefit. This is in addition to the abject failure of successive boards of directors managing the company over these years to meet their obligations and renege on their promises to provide domestic workers of diverse nationalities, sourced from various countries at competitive prices, which have turned out to be “all noise and no substance.”
According to sources, the aim of the Ministry’s request is to halt the erosion and evaporation of the company’s capital, while preserving what remains after it has lost more than 50 percent of its capital, as indicated by its previous annual budgets. This has prompted the Union of Cooperative Societies to formally address the ministry on multiple occasions, requesting an exit and relinquishing its share in the company due to its repeated and abject failure.
Sources considered the Union, which is supervised by the ministry, to be the biggest loser resulting from the establishment of the company, which was “stillborn.” They anticipate that if the Council of Ministers approves the Ministry’s request, the Union of Cooperative Societies and the Public Authority for Investment may be tasked with initiating the company’s liquidation procedures.
Some government reports issued years ago were cited, which confirmed that “the establishment of the state-owned company for recruiting domestic workers was done without an economic feasibility study to determine the extent to which this activity could create added value,” a fact that has been confirmed over the years by its inability to meet its obligations.
Al-Dorra Manpower Company was founded in October 2016 with a capital of 3 million Kuwaiti dinars, distributed as 60 percent (1.8 million dinars) to the Union of Cooperative Societies, and 40 percent divided among the Social Security Institution, the Public Authority for Affairs of the Crown, Kuwait Airways or its subsidiaries, and the Public Authority for Investment, each holding a 10 percent share. The company was established to recruit and train domestic workers in specialized centers with a symbolic profit margin and competitive prices. Sources from the Ministry of Social Affairs explained that the company failed to fulfill the role for which it was created, disappointing the hopes and aspirations of citizens who initially welcomed it with optimism. It did not keep its promises regarding the provision of domestic workers or the reduction of recruitment costs, in addition to the weakness of its external contracts and its failure to expand the circle of sending countries for these workers or to find new markets alongside existing ones.
