Finance Ministry Undersecretary Khalifa Hamada said yesterday that Kuwait is going ahead with the privatization of its oil sector and will offer a portion of its shares to the public as part of the state’s privatization programme, similar to the plan by Saudi Aramco announced in April. He further said that this plan will also enable Gulf and foreign investors to bid for part of the offered shares in the Kuwait market. While Hamada did not set a date for the underwriting, he said that offering oil sector shares to citizens and investors is within the projects and plans of Kuwaiti programs like the rest of the GCC countries to strengthen citizen and private sector participation and reduce the burden on the state’s general budget. He said Kuwait plans to establish companies whose shares will be put up for public underwriting or for foreign investors, and other shares will be for citizens. (Kuwait Times)