Abdulaziz al-Kulaib

Position: Under-secretary and chief engineer, Public Works Ministry

Biography: Abdulaziz al-Kulaib joined the Public Works Ministry in 1985 as an applied research engineer. In 1998, he was appointed head of the ministry's road research centre. In 1991, Al-Kulaib was appointed director of the department of road laboratories and research. Since January 1993, he has been working as the chief engineer in charge of maintenance administration at the ministry, specialising in highway engineering. Al-Kulaib was a member of the team that last year introduced the Kuwait infrastructure maintenance management system for roads, bridges, sanitary and storm sewers, aimed at ensuring infrastructure maintenance. Al-Kulaib obtained his BSc degree in civil engineering at the University of Washington in the US in 1981. He was awarded his master's degree in civil engineering from the University of Arizona, also in the US, in 1984.

Contact Tel: (+965) 2538 5520

Srour al-Otaibi

Position: Team leader, megaprojects sector, Public Works Ministry.

Biography: Srour al-Otaibi is team leader for the Bubiyan island development project in the megaprojects sector at the Public Works Ministry. Al-Otaibi has worked in various positions for the ministry since 1990, during which time he has contributed to the management and execution of several construction projects in Kuwait. One example is Bubiyan island, the biggest island in Kuwait. In 2004, the government approved a multi-billion-dollar project to create a major commercial seaport on the island to take advantage of increased northern Gulf sea traffic as a result of the reconstruction of Iraq. Al-Otaibi is also leading the management of the Failaka island and Khairan city projects. Al-Otaibi obtained his BSc in civil engineering from Kuwait University in 1989, and holds an MBA from Maastricht Business School, which he was awarded in 2007.

Contact Tel: (+965) 2538 5520

Ibrahim al-Ghusain

Position: Director, infrastructure project development division, Kharafi National

Biography: Ibrahim al-Ghusain has been with Kharafi National since 2004. He was initially appointed as a consultant and subsequently become director of project development in the company's infrastructure division. Kharafi National is a key infrastructure developer in Kuwait, with expertise in water, wastewater treatment and reclamation, district cooling, solid waste management and enhanced oil recovery. Al-Ghusain is also the general manager of Utilities Development Company, the special-purpose company created for the development of the Sulaibiya wastewater treatment and reclamation plant in Kuwait. Al-Ghusain has bachelor's and master's degrees and a doctorate in civil engineering, specialising in environmental engineering and water resources, as well as 15 years' experience in teaching, research and administration at Kuwait University.

Contact Tel: (+965) 2225 9000

Meshan al-Otaibi

Position: Assistant under-secretary for planning and training, Electricity & Water Ministry

Biography: Meshan al-Otaibi is leading the Electricity & Water Ministry's plans to build a power generation plant at Subiya in response to power cuts. Last year, Al-Otaibi was a key member of the team that drew up a five-year development plan for Kuwait's power and water sector. He is also a key figure in the country's plans to build a nuclear power reactor. In April, he announced that Kuwait had set up a special committee to oversee the development of the state's nuclear power programme. The body will report directly to Kuwait's Council of Ministers and will focus on developing nuclear power stations with the other five GCC states, as well as developing a unilateral nuclear power programme. Al-Otaibi is a member of the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research and has written many papers on the topic of water management in Kuwait.

Contact Tel: (+965) 5371075

Husam al-Tahous

Position: Assistant under-secretary, construction sector, Public Works Ministry

Biography: Husam al-Tahous has worked at the Public Works Ministry for 27 years. He is currently an assistant under-secretary to the construction sector and is responsible for five departments overseeing 110 projects, which are all at different stages of completion. One of the largest construction projects in his portfolio is the Jabal al-Ahmed al-Sabah hospital, a 1,050-bed facility in South Surra that is due to be completed by 2011. In April, Al-Tahous announced the retendering of the project to take advantage of the lower construction costs in the country. Al-Tahous is also overseeing the ministry's plans for six new hospitals across the country. He holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Kuwait University and a master's degree in construction engineering and management from the University of Southern California in the US.

Contact Tel: (+965) 2538 5520

Ibrahim Shukri Dabdoub

Position: Chief executive officer, National Bank of Kuwait

Biography: National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) holds almost 90 per cent of the contract bond market in Kuwait, giving it a near monopoly over the supply of debt guarantees on public sector infrastructure projects. Dabdoub first joined NBK in 1961, becoming deputy chief executive officer (CEO) in 1981 and CEO two years later. He has steered the bank through difficult times, most notably the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990. During the invasion, NBK was the only Kuwait bank operating, smuggling its records out of Kuwait to London via Jordan. Dabdoub played a vital role in later rebuilding the Kuwaiti economy, opening all the letters of credit for the reconstruction of the country. Dabdoub studied at the College des Freres in Bethlehem in the West Bank, the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, and at the US' Stanford University in California.

Contact Tel: (+962) 6580 0400