DEAD SEA: The
World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa opened in the
Jordanian capital yesterday, with heads of state and senior officials from
across the region, including Kuwait, in attendance. The Kuwaiti delegation to
the talks, which revolve around plans to build a more resilient economy in the
Middle East and North African region, includes Finance Minister Dr Nayif
Al-Hajraf and the governor of Kuwait's central bank Dr Mohammad Al-Hashel.

Jordan has paid a heavy price for "doing the right thing" in dealing
with the influx of refugees, King Abdullah II told the forum, saying the
Hashemite Kingdom continues to cooperate with its international partners over
the matter. The Middle East and North Africa region represents one of the
biggest consumer markets in the world, the Jordanian monarch emphasized, saying
the talks will address some of the most pressing problems facing the region.

Issues such as a two-state solution to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
and fighting climate change also feature atop the agenda, UN secretary general
Antonio Guterres said. "Global challenges have become increasingly
correlated," he pointed out, but the response to these challenges remains
"incoherent", Guterres added, acknowledging Amman's significant
contributions towards international peace and security. The two-day talks
include matters from healthcare and education to gender parity and
anti-corruption efforts.

Kuwaiti Minister of Finance Dr Nayef Al-Hajraf expressed his confidence in the
Kuwaiti youth potentials for creativity and business leadership. The (Kuwaiti)
Government believes that small and medium enterprises, mainly launched by the
junior citizens, will spur the gross domestic product, said Dr Al-Hajraf in
remarks to KUNA on sidelines of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and
North Africa, dubbed (Towards New Cooperation Systems).

He expressed deep satisfaction at young Kuwaitis who have succeeded in
expanding their investments in small and medium enterprises, not only in Kuwait
but also in the region. Also boastful, the minister noted that Kuwaiti
companies have been included in a list of 100 emerging and promising companies,
operating in technology, in the region. Earlier, he met with Jordanian Prime
Minister Dr Omar Al-Razaz, conveying to him greetings from His Highness the
Prime Minister. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Finance said in a statement the he had
also held a sideline session with the Kazakh Foreign Minister, Beibut
Atamkulov, discussing commercial cooperation and issues.

Minister Al-Hajraf also met with the World Economic Forum, President of the
World Economic Forum, Borge Brende. During the meeting, they discussed the
vision of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on
Kuwait's transformation into a financial center attracting investment in which
the private sector will lead the economic activity and encourage the spirit of
competition and raising the efficiency of production in light of a supportive
institutional body.

They also discussed Kuwait's desire to display its 2035 vision at the Davos
2020 forum. It said that a number of leading personalities and decision makers
in the public and private sectors from the Middle East and North Africa and a
number of regional and international speakers and experts in various fields
also took part. - KUNA