Restructuring of the Kuwaiti Supreme Council for Family Affairs and Tightening Control Over Aid and Associations

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The Kuwaiti Minister of Social Affairs, Family, and Childhood, Dr. Amthal Al-Huwaila, stated that the ministry is working on modifying and reducing the organizational structure of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, and transferring a number of its employees to the Ministry of Social Affairs, in addition to training staff on the mechanisms for receiving reports of domestic violence and dealing with them professionally.

In this context, she clarified that the protection centers dealt with 159 reports and cases of domestic violence, and 157 for child protection. Concurrently, she pointed out that 6 protection orders were issued, and shelter was provided for 14 cases. The consultation center received 700 calls, provided 512 consultations, and held 70 advisory sessions.

Regarding financial discipline, the minister confirmed the continuation of auditing public assistance and cases under Article 8, explaining that the audit covered 31,648 cases, while the total expenditure in June was about 17.45 million dinars. The ministry recovered more than 630,000 dinars in the past three months from assistance that was disbursed without justification.

She continued that the ministry completed the closure of the financial year ahead of the scheduled time, and 32 rulings were issued in its favor out of 33, with a success rate of 97%.

In this context, it was pointed out that the ministry and the entities under its supervision continued during the past three months to work on legislative, regulatory, and service files, developing performance and digital transformation, following up on the needs of deserving groups, and enhancing communication with citizens.

Al-Huwaila stated in remarks to the Kuwaiti newspaper "Al-Qabas" that these files include the completion of the draft law on persons with disabilities, the regulation of kiosks in cooperative societies, and the submission of a new draft law for cooperative societies.

Additionally, she added that the Supreme Council for Family Affairs has completed a draft regulation on domestic violence and submitted a draft amendment to the law establishing it, while the legislative work included the completion of the draft law for the Islamic Charitable Organization.

In parallel, she clarified that the ministry issued decisions to dissolve 12 inactive and violating public benefit societies, organized the procedures for general assemblies and elections, and enhanced the follow-up on compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements.

Regarding the oversight of cooperative societies, Al-Huwaila confirmed the continued review of contracts for invested shops and publishers to prevent subleasing, the establishment of new mechanisms for cleaning and guarding contracts, and the organization of expenditures from the social services budget, in addition to reducing subsidized prices.

The report indicated the issuance of 22 judicial seizures, the dismissal of 8 members from the board of the Al-Firdous Association, and 2 members from the board of the Abdullah Mubarak Association, with referral to the Public Prosecution, and the dissolution of the board of the Al-Zahra Association, while inspection teams continue their work.

It stated that the ministry has offered 45 job opportunities for Kuwaitis in 15 associations through the "Fakhruna" platform, while the localization of supply branches in 40 associations has been achieved over the past three months. Additionally, 77 financial monitors out of 140 applicants and 173 administrative monitors out of 295 applicants passed the appointment tests.

Regarding service development, Al-Huwaila stated that the ministry has completed the operation of the electronic archiving system and has worked on developing assistance systems, family care, and cooperative sector platforms.

She also added that the work included researching a proposal to create a platform for suppliers and manufacturers, and an electronic request system that allows associations to serve consumers and deliver goods within their geographical area, in addition to coordinating the possibility of electronic linkage with the central assistance system to verify the data of applicants.

She pointed out the expansion of automated linking and data exchange, and the introduction of linking with 24 government entities, aimed at speeding up transaction completion and shortening the documentation cycle. The Authority for the Disabled also launched 10 new services through "Sahl", including medical committee appointments, certificate renewal, retirement, hearing aids, wheelchairs, and exemption from fingerprinting and traffic plates.

Regarding social services, Al-Huwaila stated that the ministry launched the "Taa'afi" initiative to support recovering addicts, rehabilitate them, and integrate them into society. The national campaign "A Nation Protects You" was implemented for drug prevention, and 39 workshops and 20 lectures were organized in community development centers.

As for the Public Authority for Disabled Affairs, she confirmed the ongoing review of disability certificates, medical files, and the files of caregivers to verify eligibility, as well as auditing disbursement lists to prevent duplication or payments to suspended or deceased cases. She noted that the legal investigation committee continues to examine violations and contracts within the authority.

She mentioned that the authority completed 663 transactions for monthly allowances, 750 for domestic worker and driver allowances, 863 for caregivers, 860 for caregiver retirement, and 238 for the retirement of persons with disabilities over the past three months. The work included installing surveillance cameras in care homes and starting the establishment of a sensory room in the new Kuwait International Airport building.