Kuwaitis awarded at international invention exhibition

Kuwait’s Permanent Representative to the UN and Other International Organizations in Geneva Ambassador Jamal Al-Ghunaim (left) poses with Kuwaiti inventor Dr Meshari Al-Mutairi

KUWAIT: Kuwait Science Club (KSC) throws its weight behind Kuwaiti inventors and creators for nothing but just as a 'national duty', its chairman Talal Al-Kharafi said yesterday. Voicing pride at the recent win by Kuwaiti inventors of awards at an international invention exhibition in Geneva, Kharafi said in a press statement his club is absolutely eager to support Kuwaiti inventors and showcase their inventions both at home and abroad.

Kuwaiti inventors Dr Meshari Al-Mutairi and Hussein Bumejdad were awarded key prizes during the International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva Saturday. The trophy has unequivocally reflected the highly elevated level of Kuwaiti inventors, and has capped the efforts of the State of Kuwait in general and the KSC in particular to provide care and backing to Kuwaiti inventors and creators, Kharafi remarked. Kuwait's participation in this year's event, which kick-started on April 11, was really eye-catching, the KSC chief boasted. The exhibition attracted 822 inventors from 40 countries, who fielded the competition with a total 1,000 inventions, he pointed out.

KUWAIT: Kuwaiti inventors Dr Meshari Al-Mutairi (left) and Hussein Bumejdad. — KUNA

Management of the International Exhibition of Inventions had awarded Dr Mutairi its golden prize for making a device to treat oil-polluted soil. Mutairi dedicated the internationally renowned award to Their Highnesses the Amir, the Crown Prince, the Prime Minister and the Kuwaiti people. He also expressed gratitude to the State of Kuwait Permanent Representative at the UN and International Organizations in Geneva, Ambassador Jamal Al-Ghunaim, for facilitating his participation in the exhibition competition.

Mutairi said it had dawned on him to create a method for cleansing oil soaked soil when the Iraqi occupiers torched and damaged Kuwaiti oil installations, forming pools of crude oil and polluting the country's soil. The problem preoccupied Mutairi during his studies in Britain in environmental engineering till he had read and fathomed inner meaning of the Quranic verse, "we have made everything alive from water," thus he had started examining ways to clean the soil with water, rather than chemical substances.

Mutairi, whose invention was accredited by Kuwait Oil Company, said the technique is applicable in various kinds of soil of other countries. The inventor said he would travel to Oman to market his invention in the GCC country. Mutairi had taken part in the exhibition along with another talented Kuwaiti, Hussein Mejdad, a firefighter, who displayed a device for unlocking doors- a tool that can be quite useful especially in distressing conditions like putting out fires. Ghunaim meanwhile affirmed that the golden award depicted honoring for the State of Kuwait's care for creative citizens. - KUNA