Stimulating spending is needed to boost national output
Sustainable development is not limited to large-scale projects. While these are important drivers, they do not create a local economy if they are the sole focus, as what is required are supportive and stimulating factors to activate the local market.
On this basis, stimulating the market cannot be achieved through decisions that restrict economic activity. Such measures effectively encourage spending abroad, whereas the true circulation of money occurs through the local recycling of capital and by curbing wasteful expenditure overseas. Here, I am referring to local tourism. Kuwait experiences high temperatures for about six months of the year. Nevertheless, there are many facilities that, if utilized correctly, can provide significant benefits to the country and revitalize the local economy.
Among these facilities are agricultural plots. While it is true that they serve food security objectives and their owners have demonstrated dedication in this field—as witnessed during past crises—they are very costly for farmers. Subsidies, no matter how substantial, do not ensure sustainability.
This point was recognized by neighboring countries similar to Kuwait in climate, customs, and traditions. For example, the United Arab Emirates allowed farm owners to utilize portions of their land to establish recreational retreats for locals, thereby promoting domestic tourism. This approach also stimulated local production and the retail sector through direct sales from the farm to customers visiting for weekend holidays.
The same applies to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. By doing so, they encouraged small local investments, leading to the emergence of citizen entrepreneurs working in various sectors that support these facilities, which in turn helped activate regional economies.
On the other hand, industrial plots have been subject to new decisions that curb individual initiative and the rights of their owners. These decisions prevented the utilization of these plots in ways that would serve the broader economic activity, such as prohibiting the leasing of spaces for auxiliary production activities or forbidding the allocation of part of the plot for worker housing. Allowing such housing would have enabled workers to be more productive due to their proximity to their workplace. Furthermore, the inability to sell these plots has closed the door to development in these sectors.
In other areas, recent decisions have forced people to incur losses that could have been avoided. For instance, smart regulation of carports or spaces in front of homes could have allowed their use for planting gardens. Such spaces would serve two important purposes: environmental and socio-economic. If left as unused open spaces, they increase costs for both the environment and the public, causing significant damage. In Kuwait’s local environmental conditions, such wastage is unnecessary.
Therefore, solutions exist, but they require correct decisions that serve sustainable development. For example, imposing fees on utilized spaces in front of homes, or having the state share in the profits generated from industrial plots and agricultural holdings after they are sold to their owners, would help develop the country’s business environment and reduce many costs. At the same time, this would support large-scale projects in the process of developmental growth.
Regional changes are purely political and economic. If there is no realistic, well-studied plan, Kuwait will miss the train without reaping the major benefits hoped for. The services provided by a conducive business environment encourage economic stability and help generate benefits that uplift large-scale projects, as it is an integrated process. Large projects require local outlets and supportive tools connected to people, encouraging the individual initiative upon which Kuwait has relied since ancient times.
People, envy and jealousy do not build nations.
