Page 363 - 4 Persian Trade rep KUWAIT 2_Neat

3
International Money Order through the Post (E) Agriculture.
Office or through Banks in Basra. This total 1G. As stated above, neither Kuwait nor its
absence of exchange facilities is a gerat drawback environments can boast of any agricultural re­
and a considerable hendicap in the conduct of quick sources. There are no date plantations of any
business transactions. value, no fields and not many kitchen gardens.
The reason for the absence of banks is threefold :— The villages to the south-east of Kuwait supply
u limited but increasing quantity of vegetables
(«*) Inadequate volume of trade,
and melons. The agricultural centre in the princi­
(f/) Religious prejudice of people against pality L Jahrah (situated some 25 miles south-west
charging interest on capital, and of Kuwait) which has greatly improved during the
year owing to the facilities a (forded by motor
('•) Owners’ reluctance to entrust money out
of their own hands. transport in taking the products into town. The
village has over 2.b(X) date trees, under wluch
12. Apropos of (c) above: people of Kuwait wheat, barley and l.icernc, melons, watermelons,
not unlike those of so many other backward pumpkins, beans anti route other vegetables are
countries, arc in the habit of hoarding money to a grown in increasing quantities. The above cropsare
very larje extent. The ease may la-re be cited mostly irrigated bur:: .mall amount of wheat and
of a t vp/"il Kuwaiti <•:;}>:! ilist, who made a fortune barley is grown by rainfall alone. The agriculture
in the pearl trade and who is bv far 1 lie richest of.Ialirr.li might be '•'•ndder&Mv increased if more
man in Kuwait. It is .vtid that he Mill keeps all money u ere sunk in it. The second most important
his cash in an underground cellar, takes a periodical agricultural centre is the island of Falnikah where
cheek of his money (silver) by weighing it, and on wheat and barley are grown with some success on
finding k correct locks the cellar again till the next the clayey patches. The island also produces
check falls due. vegetables especially carrots which are of an excep­
tionally fine quality but the agriculture is generally
13. The same attitude applies to smaller money
holders who appear to fcrrl more- at ease with their inferior to that of Jahrah.
money under lock and key or buried underground 17. As will l>e seen from what has been said
than when it is invested in some way. a! ovo, from an agricultural point of view the value
of land in Kuwait is very little. Except in case of
13-A. This attitude, of capitalists, both large and land surrounding the Town, which can be useful
small, las undoubtedly ail adverse effet t on ti.u f«^r building purposes, land is free and everybody
money market. It tends to an unnecessary with­ is at liberty to take up any unoccupied piece and
drawal uf money from circulation and ultimately develop it.
results in contraction of currency and tightness of The Kuwait Government keeps no records of land
money.
holdings, nor is any land revenue charged to the
cultivator.
(C) Taxation.
Except, therefore, for a for of the tracts of land
14. An indirect tax in the form of a duty of in the environs of the Town, which are held by
4\ per tent. ad valorem is levied on imports into private owners and which change hands as any
Kuwait. This bears very lightly on people and its other property does, land is not hypothecated.
effect on purchasing power of the consumer is (F) Industry.
insignificant.
18. General.—As has been already stated Kuwait
Under agreement with His Majesty’s Government has no industries worth the name, of her own.
articles imported by British subjects pay only The reasons for this state of affairs are as under :—
4 per cent. duty.
(а) Shyness of Capital (See remarks under head
FINANCIAL, page 2) and lack of enter­
(D) Military.
prise among local people.
19. Commandeering The questions do not (б) Limited and uncertain market.
of Transport, arise since Kuwait (o) Influx of cheap Japanese goods aa a result
‘military system is of low customs duty, which tends to kill
Effect* of Conscription. J that of a tribal type. industrial initiative.
M29EAD