Kuwait: Kuwait’s Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) will do everything possible to attain food security in line with guidelines by the government and Kuwait Vision 2035 development strategy. The PAAF assurance was declared by the acting director general, Mishal Al-Graifah, in a statement to KUNA, on Thursday.

As to locally-produced poultry products, he affirmed that “the eggs’ self-sufficiency has been achieved,” noting that regular production has been “abundantly restored” due to subsidies’ allocations. The authority, namely the livestock division, is “working on many poultry projects” aimed at enhancing the production. As to fisheries, he said the fish resources have been growing, with sufficiency estimated at 25 percent, in addition to 50 percent in the shrimps’ category.

EPA installs RVMs

In another development, the Environment Public Authority (EPA), in coordination with the Environment Protection Fund, has installed reverse vending machines (RVMs) at some locations to reward advocates of waste sorting and recycling. The machine gives points for inserting wasted containers; replaceable with purchase coupons. The machine does not take papers; only glass, plastic or metallic containers. One of the machines has been placed at the EPA headquarters, another at Al-Jahra reserve and the third at the premises of Kuwait Oil Company. The plan is to install many of them at cooperative stores and at various points in the country.

Controlling inflation

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Abdulwahab Al-Rushaid said that the Central Bank said inflation rates in Kuwait are a result of foreign markets and global prices of imported goods, adding the Central Bank does not have the ability to completely control local inflation rates. “The inflation rate in April reached 4.71 percent and declined in September to 3.10 percent. These rates are considered moderate in comparison with global rates,” Rushaid said. “The surplus in trade balance of Kuwait increased between 2020 and 2021 from KD 3,781 million to KD 9,424 million, equivalent to about 149 percent, driven by the rise in oil prices,” he explained.