KUWAIT CITY, Dec 20: Member of the board of directors at the public authority for roads and transportation Mohammed Al- Hediba disclosed that initial studies regarding the Metro project has been concluded, and that a tender for consultation firms will be raised within two months, noting that the winning firm will oversee the evaluation of technical offers essential to the project.Al-Hediba went on to say that with an estimated cost of KD 1 billion and a strong collaboration between the private and public sectors, construction will begin in 2018 and scheduled to be completed by the year 2023. He added that the metro system is vital for the future of Kuwait, and it is also a key factor that will contribute to solving the traffic issue in the country, affirming that more developments regarding this project will be more evident as soon as the State Municipality finalizes its currently undergoing Urban Development plan.In another development, Assistant to the dean of student affairs and scientific research at the collage of dental medicine Dr Adel Al-Asfour asserted that the collage was unable to increase the number of entries for the upcoming educational year. He explained that the collage will not be able to accept more than 25 new graduates, as the educational policy for dental medicine requires each fifth-year student to have their own practice clinic until graduation, and that the current number will be unable to receive an increment. When asked about the state of the facilities, Dr Al-Asfour stated that while the number and sizes of clinics have not changed, its equipment and systems have been upgraded and updated in accordance to technological development.By Ahmed Al-Naqeeb Arab Times Staff