Manama: Four Kuwaiti lawmakers are pushing to raise the monthly minimum wage of Kuwaiti nationals in the public sector to 1,500 Kuwaiti dinars (Dh18,360).
“Employees should also be given yearly increments that keep up with the inflation rate in the country,” MPs Nasser Al Merri, Faisal Al Kindari, Hamad Al Harshani and Bader Al Badhali said in the motion they filed to the parliament.
Under the proposal, housing credits should be raised to 100,000 dinars for all applicants regardless of their gender.
Allowances for children should be 100 dinars per child and without a limit to the number of children, they said, local Arabic daily Al Jareeda reported on Sunday.
Employees who live in rented accommodation should be given 350 dinars per month while women who reach the age of 55 should have a minimum monthly salary of 550 dinars, the lawmakers said.
The MPs said that priority in granting Kuwaiti nationality should be given to foreign women married to Kuwaiti men, to the children of Kuwaiti women and to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nationals.
Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE formed the GCC, a loose political, economic and military alliance, in 1981.
Kuwaiti nationality should also be granted to stateless people (Bidoon) who have deployed outstanding efforts in the service of Kuwait and to those who possess special expertise that could contribute to the country’s development, they said.
The lawmakers attributed their decision to push for the new financial and citizenship privileges to ensure the protection and cohesion of Kuwaiti families and to help them face financial challenges.
The current Kuwaiti parliament was elected in December after the dissolution of the legislative house voted in 11 months earlier following a ruling by the Constitutional Court.
The new lawmakers have pledged to push for legislation that would improve people’s living conditions.
