Kuwait Announces New Government Amid Ongoing Political Crisis

Kuwait has formed its seventh government in three years after the previous one resigned in January, just three months after taking office. The key portfolios of foreign affairs and oil have remained unchanged, while Manaf Abdulaziz al-Hajrey was appointed minister for finance and economic and investment affairs. The new cabinet includes two women, Amani Suleiman Buqammaz in public works and Mai Jazzem al-Baghli in social affairs. The government’s biggest challenge is “to regain the trust of the people,” said Ahmad al-Din, a member of the political bureau of the Kuwaiti Progressive Movement. Social services such as health care and education are decaying due to continuous rifts between elected lawmakers and cabinets put in place by the ruling Al Sabah family. The previous government tendered its resignation when lawmakers were planning to grill ministers over the management of state finances. The constitutional court nullified the results of last year’s legislative elections, in which the opposition won the most seats, in March and reinstated the previous parliament.