Kuwait Times, Saturday, Dec 03, 2022 | Jamadi Al Awwal 9, 1444
Kuwait’s PAAAFR vows to attain food security
Kuwait:
Kuwait’s Public
Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR) will do everything
possible to attain food security in line with guidelines by the government and
Kuwait Vision 2035 development strategy. The PAAF assurance was declared by the
acting director general, Mishal Al-Graifah, in a statement to KUNA, on Thursday.
As to locally-produced poultry products, he affirmed that “the eggs’
self-sufficiency has been achieved,” noting that regular production has been
“abundantly restored” due to subsidies’ allocations. The authority, namely the
livestock division, is “working on many poultry projects” aimed at enhancing the
production. As to fisheries, he said the fish resources have been growing, with
sufficiency estimated at 25 percent, in addition to 50 percent in the shrimps’
category.
EPA installs RVMs
In another development, the Environment Public Authority (EPA), in coordination
with the Environment Protection Fund, has installed reverse vending machines
(RVMs) at some locations to reward advocates of waste sorting and recycling. The
machine gives points for inserting wasted containers; replaceable with purchase
coupons. The machine does not take papers; only glass, plastic or metallic
containers. One of the machines has been placed at the EPA headquarters, another
at Al-Jahra reserve and the third at the premises of Kuwait Oil Company. The
plan is to install many of them at cooperative stores and at various points in
the country.
Controlling inflation
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Abdulwahab Al-Rushaid said that the Central Bank
said inflation rates in Kuwait are a result of foreign markets and global prices
of imported goods, adding the Central Bank does not have the ability to
completely control local inflation rates. “The inflation rate in April reached
4.71 percent and declined in September to 3.10 percent. These rates are
considered moderate in comparison with global rates,” Rushaid said. “The surplus
in trade balance of Kuwait increased between 2020 and 2021 from KD 3,781 million
to KD 9,424 million, equivalent to about 149 percent, driven by the rise in oil
prices,” he explained.