Kuwait Humanitarian Background
For more detailed database on disasters by country, please see the Centre for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters:
http://www.emdat.be/country-profile
For information on the invasion of Kuwait, please select the following document:
Kuwait Humanitarian Background Additional Information
Calamities and Seasonal Affects
Customs: Storage and Handling process is subject to change as per the calamities and seasonal affects through which the goods can be released from customs premises based on declared guarantees by customs managing director
Local business and government operations can be affected by local holidays, most of which are based on the Islamic calendar.
Please note that government offices typically operate from 9:00-14:00 daily, from Sunday-Thursday. Weekends are Friday and Saturday.
Capacity and Contacts for In-Country Emergency Response
Government
The Emir of Kuwait is the sponsor of the local Red Crescent Society, and most international charity work is organized under the auspices of the KRCS. Logistics Cluster partners should plan on coordinating with the KRCS for availability of services, including support and information for allowing duty free goods permissions.
There are a limited number of NGO’s registered in Kuwait, so individual humanitarian agencies should also consider coordination with the KRCS and other local charities in order to ensure customs documentation and other process requirements are met. All International Humanitarian organizations need to liaise with MoFA.
During Iraq War 2003, the Kuwait Government run the Humanitarian Operations Centre (HOC) coordinating all humanitarian cargo to Iraq with specific procedures for UN agencies and NGOs. HOC is currently not operational, but MoFA is the initial contact regarding HOC.
The Arab Humanitarian Portal: Website of Arabhum
