KUWAIT CITY, April 14: Head of the Kuwaiti Consumer Protection Association Mishal Al- Mana presented ten proposals to the government for protecting the home front in the event of an escalation in the war in the region following the recent Iranian attack on Israel last night. In a special statement to Al-Seyassah, Al-Mana stressed that the first of these solutions is to secure a strategic stock of basic and necessary commodities such as food, medicine, and fuel, so that they can be accessed quickly in the event of a disruption in supply chains. In the second proposal, he called for working to form an emergency committee with state ministries such as the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Defense, and the National Guard to unify efforts and resources. Al-Mana called for the need to establish an effective communication system between the committee and the governmental, private and public sectors to exchange information quickly and accurately and to develop a plan to communicate with citizens to reassure them and inform them of developments.

In his fourth proposal, the head of the Kuwait Consumer Protection Association called for the need to conduct periodic analyses of potential risks and develop scenarios for various crises that may arise during the war to better prepare for them. In his fifth proposal, Al-Mana stressed the importance of developing and creating a plan to exchange non-essential goods with basic goods between companies. Regarding the sixth proposal, he stressed the importance of organizing awareness campaigns and training programs for companies and individuals on how to deal with crises and prepare for them, such as managing personal inventory and emergency financial planning.

Proposal
In his seventh proposal, Al-Mana called for activating the association’s unified digital system, which was submitted to the Ministry of Commerce (Al-Siddiq Department) to effectively monitor and manage resources and basic commodities, which tracks stocks and alerts to potential risks. In the eighth proposal, Al-Mana highlighted the importance of using artificial intelligence techniques to analyze market data and predict crises and their effects on the economy and supply chains, which enables the committee to make proactive decisions.

Through his ninth proposal, he called for developing a specialized unit in cybersecurity within the committee to confront the increasing cyber threats during wars. This unit would be responsible for monitoring the digital infrastructure of vital ministries and companies to evaluate and address security vulnerabilities and develop emergency response plans to deal with cyber incidents. Finally, in the tenth proposal, Al-Mana called for developing plans to use alternative commercial and logistical routes if main or international roads are cut off. Meanwhile, according to informed health sources, the Ministry of Health is fully prepared to confront any potential incident and to raise the state of alertness. It is ready to review and activate the emergency and crisis management plans to deal with any emergencies that may occur in the region as a result of the tense regional political situation and the escalation of the Iran-Israel war.

They highlighted the coordination of the Ministry of Health with various ministries and state institutions to develop an integrated plan for securing the basic commodities and providing a sufficient strategic stock of medicines and medical supplies. The sources explained that several meetings were held yesterday in various health facilities to review and activate emergency plans in coordination with the Central Blood Bank, the Medical Emergency Department, and the emergency units in hospitals and health centers to deal with any potential accident.

The ministry intends to form an “emergency” committee specialized in studying and reviewing the plans and strategies drawn up by various sectors and ensuring its readiness to confront and manage potential crises, in coordination with the public and private sectors to increase blood stocks and avoid shortages in medicines and medical supplies in the future. The sources reassured that the health situation in the country is stable and that integrated health plans have been put in place to provide medicines and medical services in its various facilities, and to increase blood stocks. They affirmed that there is a clear emergency stock to meet the needs, which is renewed periodically to maintain the validity of blood of all types.

By Najeh Bilal and Marwa
Al-Bahrawi Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff