The National Assembly (parliament) endorsed an ambitious five-year development plan (2015/2020) in its regular session on Wednesday and referred it to the government.
The lawmakers also voted into law the bill on the development plan of the first fiscal year of 2015/2016.
They also referred to the cabinet the follow-up reports about the execution of the development plans of the past four years.
"The five-year development plan which will be put in place as of April 1, 2015 to March 30, 2020 is based on His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah's vision to turn Kuwait into a global financial and commercial hub," Minister of State for Development and Planning Affairs Hend Al-Sabeeh said during the parliamentary session.
Al-Sabeeh, also minister of social affairs and labor, pointed out that the plan's objectives include increasing the growth domestic product (GDP); beefing up private sector's contribution to the development; boosting human resources; upgrading housing policy; and promoting effective management.
For his part, Assistant Secretary General for Planning Affairs and the General Secretariat of the Supreme Council of Planning and Development Dr. Riyadh Al-Fars disclosed that the law estimates the total cost of five-year development plan at KD 34 billion (USD 114.8 billion).
The projected cost of the development plan of the first year (FY 2015/2016) is KD 6.6 billion (USD 22.3 billion) to finance the establishment of 92 new projects and development of 429 existent others.