Kuwait PM Shuffles Cabinet, Appoints New Finance, Oil Ministers

Kuwaits prime minister shuffled his five-month-old cabinet, appointing Anas Al-Saleh as finance minister and Ali Al-Omair as the ninth oil minister in 10 years.

The appointments were approved by Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, who also issued a decree accepting the resignation of seven former ministers, state television reported. Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabahs cabinet includes four Islamists, a Shiite and a woman, Hind Al-Subeeh who was named minister of social affairs and labor as well as state minister for planning and development.

The Dec. 23 resignations followed grillings of cabinet members by lawmakers over alleged mismanagement and corruption, which also targeted the premier.

Sheikh Salem AbdulAziz Al-Sabah, who served as Kuwaits central bank governor for 25 years and was appointed finance minister in August, had called for fiscal discipline and criticized the governments spending policies. His replacement, Al-Saleh, held the commerce and industry portfolio prior to the shuffle.

The challenge for the cabinet is how to handle and deal with the feisty parliament, Abdullah Al-Shayji, chairman of the political science department at Kuwait University, wrote on his twitter account after todays changes. All of the ministers questioned by legislators have left or been removed from the cabinet.

Al-Omair, who holds a PhD in analytical chemistry from the University of Kent, has been a lawmaker since 2006. Hes a member of the Islamic Salafi Alliance.

Sheikh Jaber has now formed six cabinets since his appointment in Nov. 2011 as the OPEC member grapples with political disputes that have led to repeated dissolutions of parliament and ministerial resignations. The instability has slowed implementation of the countrys $110 billion development plan to diversify its oil-reliant economy.

To contact the reporter on this story: Fiona MacDonald in Kuwait at fmacdonald4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shaji Mathew at shajimathew@bloomberg.net

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Kuwait PM Shuffles Cabinet, Appoints New Finance, Oil Ministers