VZCZCXRO3416
RR RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHMOS
DE RUEHKU #0605/01 0521116
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 211116Z FEB 06
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3125
RUEHAD/AMEMBASSY ABU DHABI 1387
INFO RUEHEE/ARAB LEAGUE COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 000605 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/PI, NEA/ARPI, NEA/PPD, IIP/G/NEA 
ABU DHABI FOR MEPI (HWECHSEL, MHOPKINS, AALKHATIB) 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL KMPI KU MEPI
SUBJECT: KUWAIT MEPIC 3:  Harvesting the Fruits of Small Grants 
 
Ref: A) Kuwait 540 
 B) Kuwait 436 
     C) 05 Kuwait 4144 
     D) 05 Kuwait 2732 
 
¶1. Summary:  The Ambassador chaired Kuwait's MEPI team meeting held 
January 31, 2006, to review the progress of MEPI in Kuwait during 
the first quarter (Q1) of FY06 and to make plans for the next 
quarter.  The key development during FY06Q1 was the completion of 
several MEPI Small Grant projects in Kuwait, including the brochure 
on women's legal rights and a survey of Kuwaiti attitudes toward the 
role of women in the political process (see reftel A).  NDI's 
regional campaign school held late in September, 2005, was an 
unqualified success.  Kuwait's MEPI team also facilitated, in 
December, 2005, visits to Kuwait by Erin Walsh, NEA Senior Advisor, 
and Arwa Al-Khatib, Information and Small Grants Specialist from 
MEPI's Abu Dhabi regional office, who met with a number of GOK 
officials and MEPI current and potential grant recipients to discuss 
MEPI objectives, ongoing projects and their results.  In addition to 
MEPI activities in support of the Freedom Agenda, Post continued its 
sustained efforts to promote key elements of political reform.  A 
complete set of "Freedom Agenda" reporting cables can be found on 
the Embassy Kuwait SIPRNet website.  End summary. 
 
MEPI Visitors Review Progress 
----------------------------- 
 
¶2. The Embassy hosted two visits during FY06Q1 that promoted MEPI 
and sought to gauge the progress and utility of MEPI projects in 
Kuwait.  From November 29 to December 2, 2005, Erin Walsh, NEA 
Senior Advisor, visited with officials at Kuwait's Ministry of 
Foreign Affairs, several small grant recipient organizations, and 
women's political participation program trainees.  In addition to 
these meetings, Ms. Walsh attended several traditional diwaniyas and 
a women's diwaniya breakfast, where she exchanged ideas about 
political reform as well as MEPI goals with Kuwaiti participants. 
Arwa Al-Khatib, Information and Small Grants Specialist based in the 
MEPI regional office in Abu Dhabi evaluated the progress of Kuwait's 
MEPI Small Grant recipients and promoted MEPI during her visits with 
possible future applicants from December 4 to 6, 2005. 
 
Status of Small Grants Projects 
------------------------------- 
 
¶3. During the first quarter of FY06, five small grants projects were 
in progress in Kuwait.  Members of the Embassy's MEPI team worked 
closely with grantees to encourage forward movement on each 
project: 
 
a) The Gender Budgeting Study, conducted by the Kuwait Economic 
Society, begun in FY04 reached completion, with the final report 
scheduled for an early 2006 printing. 
 
b) The Women Network completed its survey on "The Role of Women in 
the Political Process and Deepening Democracy in Kuwait."  The 
organization has distributed approximately 500 copies of the booklet 
containing its findings (reftel A). 
 
c) A female Kuwaiti academic and women's rights activist developed a 
brochure to educate Kuwaiti women about their legal rights.  Ten 
thousand copies of the brochure have been printed and are being 
distributed nationwide.  The brochure was created in coordination 
with a Kuwaiti law firm that analyzed the text based on existing 
Kuwaiti legislation and suggested improvements (reftel A). 
 
d) CineMagic's civic-minded film project began its activities during 
this quarter.  Six of the expected ten students completed the film 
school's coursework.  Three of the six students are near completion 
of their films.  The films focus on anti-smoking and anti-speeding. 
The ultimate goal of this project was not only a high-quality final 
film product, but also screening of the films as public service 
announcements at Kuwait's cinemas and on television.  The production 
process that highlighted teamwork, men and women working together, 
and democratic dialogue, has had a positive impact on the project 
participants.  The remaining CineMagic projects are due to be 
completed in Q2 and Q3 of FY06.  (Note: Post has requested ESF funds 
for an anti-trafficking in persons project that would expand on MEPI 
objectives by using CineMagic graduates to produce a series of 
public service announcements on labor exploitation.  See Kuwait 436. 
 End note.) 
 
e) The Lothan Youth Achievement Center (LoYAC) project on summer 
entrepreneurship training for youth is scheduled to be implemented 
in June and July, 2006.  The Public Affairs Section has put LoYAC's 
leadership in contact with international institutions that will aid 
the development of their summer internship projects. 
 
Women, Education and Youth 
-------------------------- 
 
KUWAIT 00000605  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶4. Three larger scale MEPI-funded programs also are progressing. 
 
a) At the end of September, the NDI Partners in Participation 
Conference took place in Kuwait.  Under the coordination of the 
Embassy's Political Section, the conference brought together more 
than 78 women from 16 countries in the Middle East to attend a 
regional training program that aimed to prepare political candidates 
to campaign for elected office in their respective countries. 
 
b) The MEPI-funded ACCESS microscholarship English-language program 
began in November 2005.  AMIDEAST is implementing the program in 
Kuwait with 200 non-elite Kuwaiti ninth- and tenth-graders 
participating in the 6-month long English-language program which is 
tied in to other Embassy Public Diplomacy programs. 
 
c) During this quarter, the Injaz/Junior Achievement implementer in 
Kuwait continued to lay the groundwork for significant program 
implementation during Q2 and Q3 of FY06.  We expect the Injaz 
project to begin implementation and actual work with students from 
Kuwaiti public and private schools early in 2006. 
 
Call for FY06 Small Grant Program Applications 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶5. During Q1, Embassy actively recruited applicants for MEPI Small 
Grants, meeting with prospective grantees, promoting MEPI at 
diwaniyas and through contacts, and faxing MEPI information to 
grassroots organizations.  By the beginning of CY2006, one completed 
application was submitted to the MEPI team.  To further promote the 
Small Grants Program, Embassy Public Affairs issued a press release 
soliciting grant applications on November 20, 2005 that was 
published in major Kuwaiti newspapers and posted on the Embassy web 
site (http://kuwait.usembassy.gov.)  Post established a deadline of 
March 9, 2006 for the receipt of all applications. 
 
Conferences & Training 
------------------------ 
 
¶6. The Embassy's MEPI team has continued to offer support to MEPI 
regional activities by recruiting, selecting, and arranging for the 
inclusion of appropriate Kuwaiti participants.  In Q1, two 
MEPI-related programs had recruitment cycles.  The MEPI U.S. 
Business Internship Program for Young Middle Eastern Women had four 
qualifying applicants.  The selection committee chose two Kuwaiti 
candidates to take part in the program:  Alia Al-Mutawa, Assistant 
in Administration Marketing at the Petrochemical Industries Company, 
and Reem Al-Hajri, Senior Investment Officer at KIPCO Asset 
Management Company, who departed for the United States in November 
¶2005. 
 
¶7. The MEPI Team EconOff, in coordination with AMIDEAST, 
participated in the selection of Kuwait's participants in the Middle 
East Entrepreneur Training in the United States (MEET U.S.) program. 
 Of 13 qualified candidates, three young women were chosen to 
represent Kuwait in the program:  Hissah Al-Sabah, Managing 
Director, Dar Al-Funoon Art Gallery; Manal Al-Husaini, General 
Manager and owner of Comtec Trading Corporation; and Wafa 
Al-Rasheed, Technical Director at the Kuwait Stock Exchange.  The 
three participants are slated to travel to the U.S. at the end of 
March 2006. 
 
¶8. In addition to the abovementioned programs, the MEPI team 
nominated two prominent Kuwaiti human rights activists and attorneys 
to participate in the Demos Institute Project: Badriya Al-Awadhi and 
Suad Al-Tararwah. 
 
Coming Up Next Quarter 
---------------------- 
 
¶9. The next quarter for MEPI in Kuwait is expected to be robust. 
Post will review Small Grant proposals, evaluate proposals for the 
Standing Program Announcement, and anticipate results from the 
Junior Achievement project. 
 
********************************************* * 
 
For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s 
 
Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ 
 
********************************************* * 
 
 
LEBARON