Kuwait Times, Sunday, Aug 28, 2022 | Safar 1, 1444
MoCI amends rules for nurseries; won’t budge on prices
Kuwait:
Minister of Commerce and Industry and Minister of Social Affairs Fahad
Al-Shuraian issued amendments to the executive rules of private nurseries. The
new rules call for a KD 5,000 deposit for the duration of the nursery’s license
to ensure the it complies with commitments as mentioned in the rules. It also
stipulates the owner must be a Kuwaiti citizen and holder of a diploma or
university degree, and must not be working in any government or private entity.
The license will be valid for five years, and the form should carry the name of
the nursery, address, number of children allowed, type of disability in case the
nursery is licensed for the disabled, concerned authorities’ approvals and the
number of employees and their duties. The license holder shall refer to the
ministry three months before the expiry of the license to complete all required
documents, and the same procedures for granting a license will be followed.
No more than three nurseries will be licensed in the same block of an area, and
one must be for the disabled. The building must be in a service-oriented
location. There must be a car parking lot with a capacity suitable with the
number of those associated with the nursery. The building must be entirely used
as a nursery and cannot be used as a residence or for any other purpose. There
must be a written approval from neighbors and signed by the area’s mayor. This
stipulation is not required for the renewal of the license unless ownership of
the residence changes hands.
Meanwhile, the commerce and industry ministry has not responded to demands of
Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry to cancel its decision of freezing
prices despite its promise to review the issue according to developments in the
world market. The ministry had issued this decision to face the repercussions of
the coronavirus pandemic, which covered all types of food.
Private companies have said the decision causes them losses, because prices have
gone up globally along with raw material costs, as well as export, shipping and
even employment costs, which requires price increases in Kuwait, adding there is
no longer any reason to stick to the decision to fix prices. Official sources
said the commerce ministry found that cancelling the decision is not feasible
and should remain until the end of the year.
The sources said the ministry’s reticence is for two reasons — the first is that
cancelling the decision will cause a sudden and maybe huge increase in prices,
which will negatively affect citizens and residents. The ministry also wants to
continue measures to support Kuwaiti families through subsidies (tamween) and
help limited-income citizens; only then will it think about cancelling the
price-fixing decision.