KUWAIT: Kuwait’s roads are cracking under pressure—literally and figuratively. From deteriorating asphalt to heavy congestion, road and transportation engineer Abdulmuhsen Alqunaie outlines the country’s biggest infrastructure challenges—and the solutions that could fix them.

Alqunaie began by comparing Kuwait’s road congestion to a house designed for three people suddenly being inhabited by seven. “When we design roads, the first critical step is conducting traffic and population analysis and study,” he explained. “We look at every detail—the number of malls, the number of houses, the grocery stores, the pharmacies. We analyze the traffic growth for the following 20 years and more.”

He stressed that once a master plan is finalized, adherence is key. “Let’s say I have a block with one pharmacy, a barbershop and three houses. I will study the area and say, well, we need two lanes here and a roundabout there. Twenty years later we can’t have someone change the barbershop to a popular pizza place. If we do, then we would have to flip the entire map,” he said. “One small discrepancy impacts everything.”

Kuwait’s centralization of government and business operations—particularly in Sharq, Mirqab, and Jibla—also plays a major role in pressure points forming on roads like the 1st Ring Road and highways 30, 35, 40, 50, 80, and 85.

“The entire country is commuting there,” he said, calling for a decentralization strategy. “We need a secondary business hub in Kuwait where most of the heavy offices can be relocated. Carrying one gallon of water is difficult, but if we split it into one-liter bottles, it’s easy to carry it bit by bit.”

Abdulmuhsen Alqunaie

Road design sketches created by Abdulmuhsen Alqunaie as he envisions solutions to Kuwait’s road woes.

A sketch created by Alqunaie which reimagines Road 225 in Mina Abdullah with bike lanes and sidewalks.

A section of a road showing surface cracks, a common issue in Kuwait.

Material matters

Alqunaie also cited asphalt quality as a concern. “We are not adjusting to the reality we live in, particularly with the rising heat waves and sandstorms,” he said. He advocated for Kuwait to adopt the ‘Superpave method’, an asphalt design approach, over the widely used ‘Marshall method’. ‘Superpave’ allows for tailoring asphalt for better performance and longer life based on a geographical area’s temperature extremes, traffic loads, and utilization of the road or highway.

“Superpave involves filling every gap with aggregate pieces, essentially preventing any empty void. But it’s not really used in Kuwait and it would need proper parameters and standards to be perfected.” But asphalt type alone isn’t enough. “We also need very detailed traffic studies that are particular with the size of heavy trucks and buses. All these factors are important to the quality of the road.”

On maintenance, he praised the ‘Abu Dhabi Pavement Strategy’, which mandates inspections every two years and resurfacing every five to ten years. “Mill and overlay involves removing the top five-centimeter layer and then replacing it with fresh asphalt. Later on, full reconstruction happens every 20 years depending on the situation.”

One of the most visible issues—gravel scattering during rainfall—has a simple but often ignored cause: low bitumen content. “The bitumen acts like glue. If it’s less than required, there’s nothing holding the aggregate together. One rainfall, and it all washes away.”

He also criticized rushed road patchwork that skips crucial steps like tack and prime coats. A prime coat protects the soil under the road from moisture loss, while a tack coat promotes bonding between existing and new asphalt layers. “They’re like the cheese holding the burger patty with the bread,” he said.

Why projects stall

Alqunaie pushed back on a common public assumption that road delays are always the fault of either the contractors or the authorities. “I keep hearing people blaming the contractors or the authorities, but I want to assure you that that’s not the case. Some things are difficult to control, and that’s natural.”

“Let’s say we agree to start at 6 am Monday and finish in two weeks. If one step falls off schedule, the entire operation is compromised,” he said. “It’s like a restaurant. If the server is late, the food’s late. If the janitor is sick, the restaurant isn’t presentable.” He quoted a proverb he believes applies to roadwork: “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

Turning to pressing needs, Alqunaie urged immediate attention to bridge rehabilitation. “We need inspections, then rehabilitation measures. We need to galvanize the steel with zinc and take detailed traffic studies to understand weight loads.” He also recommended smart traffic light systems in Kuwait City, Salmiya, and Hawally. “We need proper detection and timing technologies.”

Plans for walking, cycling

Asked about long-term priorities, Alqunaie said the Ministry of Public Works should focus on urban mobility and public engagement. “The ministry has been on a great and impressive path, lately. They have shown great progress with recent road repairs like Highway 30. However, one thing I would advise is we need to strengthen the overall planning organizational sequence.”

Inspired by projects in Abu Dhabi and Doha, he called for integrated transport networks: bike shares, scooters, sidewalks, and a revived metro plan. “The key isn’t just building these networks but convincing the public to use them—maybe even rewarding them. That could drop traffic by 20 percent.”

He dismissed the idea that Kuwait’s weather rules out walking and cycling. “Countries with severe rainfall and snowstorms still have people walking and biking. With proper shading and environmental control, I am optimistic.” He noted that small details matter too. “The quality of paint used for arrows, the type of reflectors, the presentation of bus stops. It’s all part of the same picture.”

Lessons from abroad

Drawing on years of transportation work in the United States, Alqunaie emphasized two key takeaways: perspective and strategy. While at Keolis Commuter Services in Boston, he helped digitize decades of rail system records. “It made things easier for the future of the railroads.”

At Boston Public Works, he contributed to bridge rehabilitation and public outreach. “We passed out flyers on car windshields to notify drivers about closures—better than phone notifications.”

At MassDOT, he worked on making streets safer and more accessible. “We worked on improving streets for cyclists and wheelchair users. Everything was digitized and connected through one database and software.” And sometimes, the job meant getting hands-on. “I stood at an intersection on a cold November night for two hours with a pencil and clipboard, just to take traffic counts.” In a country facing mounting infrastructure challenges, Alqunaie’s insights paint a picture of what could be achieved through clear planning, technical discipline, and public engagement.

KUWAIT: Kuwait is moving to integrate its newly acquired Bayraktar TB2 drones into environmental surveillance and civilian operations, according to a statement by the General Staff of the Army following a high-level coordination meeting held Sunday. The meeting, chaired by Deputy Chief of the General Staff Lt Gen Sabah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, gathered senior military officials and representatives from the Ministry of Public Works, Kuwait Municipality, and the Environment Public Authority, alongside other civil and security agencies.

Discussions focused on how to organize reconnaissance flights and enhance the use of drone-generated data across state institutions, “in support of observation and follow-up efforts” and to “enhance the state’s capabilities in addressing security and environmental changes,” the statement said. The meeting also reviewed the technical systems onboard the Bayraktar drone and explored its applications in defense, environmental monitoring, and the protection of vital infrastructure and borders.

Lt Gen Al-Sabah emphasized the importance of using the drone beyond military settings. “The utilization of the Bayraktar drone’s capabilities is not limited to the military side only but extends to include many civilian sectors of the state,” he said. He called for greater coordination between military and civilian entities to maximize the benefits of this advanced aerial system. He described the drone as “a qualitative leap in capabilities for monitoring, environmental surveillance, and the protection of facilities and borders,” and underscored the responsibility to invest and deploy the system effectively.

The Bayraktar TB2 is capable of flying non-stop for 24 hours, carrying up to 650 kilograms. In 2019, it completed a test flight in Kuwait that lasted 27 hours and 3 minutes, despite high temperatures, strong winds, and sandstorms.

The coordination meeting follows the arrival of Kuwait’s first Bayraktar drones earlier this month, after a $367 million purchase agreement was signed with Turkish defense company Baykar in January 2023. Kuwait became the 28th country to acquire the TB2, a drone that has been used in conflict zones including Ukraine, Libya, and Azerbaijan.

Kuwait has also been training personnel for drone operations, with the first batch of TB2 operators graduating in Turkey in July 2024, and a second group earlier this year.

While Kuwait’s discussions mark an early step in integrating drones into environmental oversight, drones have increasingly been used for that purpose in recent years. In Pakistan’s Punjab province, officials launched a drone-linked environmental monitoring system in September 2024 to track factory emissions and enforce environmental laws. In the Arctic, high-speed drones were tested earlier this year to assess the rate of glacier retreat in Greenland. Research also points to the use of drones at landfills to detect methane emissions with high spatial and temporal precision, offering a low-cost alternative to traditional monitoring methods. — Agencies

RIYADH: The Korean Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture, and Sports of the Republic of Korea have officially selected Manal Al-Gharabally, Founder and CEO of MBVISION Studios, to represent Kuwait’s creative sector at the K-Content Expo held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. She was invited to explore the latest innovations in gaming, animation and K-pop production.

The invitation came in recognition of MBVISION Studios as the first independent animation studio in Kuwait specializing in animation production and education, video games design, and integrated creative production since 2009. The visit included a high-profile signing ceremony on Thursday, July 24, 2025. During the event, Manal Al-Gharabally signed four Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with both established and emerging Korean companies across four key sectors.

In the video games sector, the two parties signed an agreement which includes the production, training, distribution, and education in both traditional and AI-driven game development, through a global ecosystem that connects learners with independent developers and international trainers.

They also signed an agreement in the field of Intellectual Property (IP), which outlines terms for the licensing, leasing, and exchange of commercial IP rights between South Korea and Kuwait, including exporting Kuwaiti characters and importing South Korean ones to the Gulf market. The two parties also signed an MoU in the field of K-Dramas to localize, distribute, and culturally adapt South Korean family and content for children. In the field of interactive and smart art performances the two parties signed an agreement to develop immersive, technology-driven artistic experiences and exhibitions.

The MoUs were signed with several companies, including Nonsense, for the exclusive licensing of educational content for children; Something Special, for the localization and distribution of Korean family dramas; Gwan Global, an award-winning startup specializing in both traditional and AI-powered game development; and Character Inc., to exchange and co-produce character IP between South Korea and Kuwait and organize interactive art exhibitions.

Several additional MoUs will be signed at a later date. These include partnerships in educational board games, immersive performance experiences, and the licensing of Kuwaiti characters for the South Korean market, with further discussions planned in the next phase.

This collaboration represents a strategic milestone in enhancing cultural and creative exchange between South Korea and Kuwait, showcasing the growing interest of South Korean companies in Gulf-based character IPs. A selected group of Kuwaiti and South Korean cartoon characters is currently undergoing artistic review, paving the way for future joint productions to be presented in Kuwait, South Korea and Saudi Arabia.

Seungchan Lee, organizer of the K-Content Expo in Saudi Arabia, expressed her sincere appreciation for the joint collaboration between South Korean companies and their Kuwaiti partner. She highlighted the significance of this initiative in building sustainable cultural and commercial bridges between the two countries, and expressed her hope to see the outcomes of this partnership realized on the ground very soon.

Manal Al-Gharabally stated: “Our business relationship with private sector companies in South Korea and MBVISION Studios has been ongoing since 2018. Over the years, we’ve collaborated with Korean clients on multiple media and creative campaigns targeting both the Middle East and local markets. Today marks a new chapter transitioning from service based collaborations to strategic partnerships focused on cultural, media, and commercial exchange across the region.”

She added that this collaboration under the auspices of KOCCA and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea represents a strategic milestone in promoting national identity and exporting local culture to global markets.

She emphasized that South Korean companies have shown a strong interest in licensing original Kuwaiti and Gulf characters, while also exploring ways to introduce Korean characters to the region through mutual cultural exchange. As part of this initiative, three original characters created by MBVISION Studios have been selected for global distribution in the fields of gaming, media production, and interactive art experiences, alongside three South Korean characters designated for promotion in the Middle East. Discussions are currently underway to further expand this artistic and cultural exchange, with several collaborative projects already planned to launch from Kuwait and Riyadh.