Economic expert Abdulrahman Al-Hamoud said the main idea or goal of establishing an institution to support SMEs is to create job opportunities for Kuwaiti youths outside government work and to provide alternative products to those imported from abroad; thus, supporting local industries on one hand and diversifying sources of national income on the other hand. He pointed out that the number of SMEs in the country ranges from 25,000 to 30,000, including approximately 1,084 enterprises financed by the government with an amount of approximately KD 220 million -- 20 percent of the capital allocated to financing SMEs in the country, which amounts to approximately KD 2 billion.

He said these projects contributed to only about three percent of the country’s gross domestic product -- a modest contribution compared to what this sector can contribute to the Kuwaiti economy. He stated that the problem with these enterprises is that most of them are financed restaurants and cafés -- commercial activities that are far removed from the primary objective to support industrial and other products as alternatives to imported products. He revealed that the total Kuwaiti youth workforce in this category does not exceed seven percent. “Although funding is essential to support these enterprises, it is more important to create an environment capable of accommodating these initiatives. Finding a headquarters or land is one of the obstacles that small investors are facing.

Therefore, the most important element in supporting entrepreneurs is finding the right location. The government must provide land to small investors at reasonable prices. For example, establishing construction tools and equipment, carpentry, electrical, and medical supplies, such as cotton and gauze, and other small enterprises require State support and the provision of spaces ranging from 50 to 200 square meters for each enterprise. These materials are easy to produce and generate good returns. If land is available and the State contributes to establishing good marketing and storage methods, with its enormous capabilities, this will ensure the serious and real success of such enterprises,” he suggested. Economic expert Najib Al-Saleh emphasized that SMEs suffer from a contradictory government approach and are in dire need of a radical overhaul of the economic environment to open the way for individual initiative and innovation through free competition. He said the government has controlled most economic activities for the past 60 years, intending to employ a national workforce with salaries and benefits exceeding 50 percent of the salaries of citizens working in the private sector. “It also established a fund allocating KD2 billion to finance SMEs. However, the fund ceased operations 10 years after its establishment.

Before this, the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) was absent; hence, the establishment of a similar fund with an allocation of KD100 million and the Industrial Bank, which previously allocated KD20 million to finance SMEs. How can a country that wants to create new government jobs continue to monopolize economic activities, while hoping to force employees to abandon their secure and stable jobs and start a business with uncertain results through loans and installments they do not know how to pay?