Kuwaiti politicians will need time

The ministers of state that Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Jaber al-Sabah will appoint in May are going to have their work cut out. After three successive governments and parliaments in as many years, the various offices charged with the country's development have become almost autonomous, according to senior sources in the country, with government mandarins left to plan and enact policy and projects on their own.

Successive ministers have tried, and often failed, to make their mark, but they have rarely had the time to push through a fresh agenda before a reshuffle happens. The plans of those who did were often shot down by opposition politicians within the country's National Assembly (parliament).

Recent political history in the country has been overshadowed by cycles of government resignations, parliamentary dissolutions, and tense relations between the executive and parliamentarians. Were this to continue, the holder of the world's fourth-largest oil reserves would fall further behind neighbouring states, such as Saudi Arabia and the UAE, in terms of development and diversification.

To prevent this malaise from spreading, clear goals need to be set and stuck to. Mega-projects such as the $15bn Al-Zour refinery, contracts for which were cancelled in March, need to be pushed through and honoured. The country has ready cash, and if even a tenth of planned spending were to go ahead, Kuwait would effectively create one of the biggest stimulus packages in the region.

This will require both a government with strong willpower and a parliament that is prepared to compromise.

The national elections will give Kuwaitis an opportunity to call for a breath of fresh air. Whoever is appointed to each ministry should at least get the chance to try out their plans.