KUWAIT: The annual cost of expatriate teachers hired according to the 'second contract' is KD 154 million, while those hired according to monthly payments annually cost around KD 5 million, the Ministry of Education (MoE) said. MoE added that the total number of expats studying in public schools, whether they are children of teachers or other government employees, is 19,000 in various stages, and that each of them annually costs KD 4,300. Responding to a parliamentary inquiry, MoE said that the total rent allowance annually paid to expatriate teachers is KD 14 million, adding that 406 expatriate teachers were laid off in 2016 and 2017 as part of its policy to replace expats with citizens.

In other news, MoE is preparing to hand over 102 of its schools to the Ministry of Interior's (MoI) elections directorate starting from Friday, May 11, pending conducting the 2018 Municipal Council elections on Saturday, May 12. In this regard, informed sources said the six educational zone directors are currently following up the preparation and maintenance operations in progress in designated polling stations.

Financial statistics

The finance ministry is about to declare the official financial statistics for the previous fiscal year, 2017-2018, in which the deficit exceeded the KD 5 billion limit after deducting the Future Generations Fund share, said informed sources, noting that 85 percent of the sum was covered from the general reserves, while 15 percent was covered through other debit tools. The sources predicted the deficit to remarkably fall during the current and the coming fiscal years thanks to oil price increases, reducing reliance on oil, governance indicators and the improvement in business environments and the state's general economic policies.

By A Saleh