Arab World : Kuwait

KuwaitInstitutions

Public administrations focusing on books

  • State publisher
    The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters - The Scientific Council at Kuwait University - The Center for Research and Kuwaiti Studies

    State foundation Function: To support book and reading policies

  • Directorate for Books
    The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters

    State foundation Function: To support book and reading policies

    The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters can be considered an institution dedicated to culture in general and to books as well. It publishes books and magazines at a symbolic price to encourage people to read.

  • National Council for Reading and Books
    The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters

    State foundation Function: To support book and reading policies

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Professional associations

  • Booksellers' associations
    The Kuwaiti Library and Information Association

    Public institution Function: To bring together bookstore professionals

  • Authors' associations
    The Kuwaiti Writers Association

    Public institution Function: To bring together writing professionals

  • Publishers' associations
    The Kuwaiti Publishers Union

    Public institution Function: To bring together publishing professionals
    Comments

    A member of the Arab Publishers Union and the International Publishers Association (IPA).

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University programmes on books

  • Professional training
    The Department of Library and Information Science at Kuwait University

    University Function: To train in library and information professions

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KuwaitPublic policies

Signing of international agreements

  • WIPO Copyright Treaty

    International agreement Function: Protection of literary and artistic works

  • Berne Convention

    International agreement Function: Protection of literary and artistic works

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Support for creation and publishing

  • Support for literary creation

    Public program Function: To carry out a cultural policy

    This is done through the State Incentive Award in the field of literature or translation.

  • Support for book publishing

    Public program Function: To implement a book and reading policy

    This is done through the National Council for Culture at the national level.

  • Support for tanslation (intra-extra)

    Public program Function: To implement a book and reading policy

    This is done through the National Council for Culture at the national level.

  • Support for publishing houses

    Public program Function: To implement a book and reading policy

    There are occasional acquisitions.

  • Book support fund

    Public program Function: To implement a book and reading policy

    General book purchases are made through the National Council for Culture at the national level.

  • Opinions of professionals

    • “The three essential measures required, in my opinion, to support the publishing sector in Kuwait are:”

      1. “Support for paper.”
      2. “Support for translation.”
      3. “Support for publishing houses through the purchase of valuable books.”

      “There are funds to support authors occasionally:”
      “An author submits a request to present their book to a committee, and if the committee approves, 100 copies of their book are purchased along with a modest financial support. This entire process is linked to the state budget, if the state allocates a specific fund for them.”

      “The process is complicated, the amounts are insufficient, and the procedure lacks transparency.”

      “There are no funds to support publishers or the publication of books.”
      “There are no funds to support translation.”

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Cultural policies

  • Books and/or reading

    Public program Function: To implement a book and reading policy

    What the National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters does can be considered a national and regional cultural policy. It publishes books on general culture, translates world literature and theater, and publishes them at symbolic prices.

    The National Council for Culture, Arts, and Letters also issues its publications in digital format.

  • Literacy

    Public program Function: To manage rights

    The Planning and Follow-up Sector in the Human Development Department of the Ministry of Planning in Kuwait conducted a literacy survey in 2000, and another survey was conducted in 2018.

  • Opinions of professionals

    “The main challenges related to public policies for books in Kuwait include:”

    • “The absence of an association, union, or governmental body concerned with published works.”
    • “The lack of a research observatory.”
    • “The difficulty in obtaining a business license due to the lack of coordination among the relevant authorities.”

    One of the most significant developments related to public policies for books and reading in the last ten years in Kuwait is the law on prior censorship

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Freedom of expression

  • Obligation to declare publications

    Decree Function: To control

    There is subsequent censorship under the supervision of the Ministry of Information.

    The Press and Publication Law No. 3 of 2006 was amended, and the Kuwaiti censorship system transitioned from prior administrative censorship to subsequent judicial censorship.

    Publishing books must be authorized by the Ministry of Information by depositing two copies of the publication with both the relevant ministry and the Kuwait National Library.

  • Control or regulation of content

    Law Functions: To control and to regulate

    Press and Publication Law No. 3 of 2006 – Chapter Three – Articles 19-28

    Comments

    Press and Publication Law No. 3 of 2006
    Chapter Three – Prohibited Matters for Publication in Printed Material or Newspapers and Penalties (Articles 19-28)

    Article 19
    It is prohibited to harm the divine essence, the Holy Quran, the prophets, the righteous companions, the wives of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), or the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) through any means of expression as specified in Article 29 of Law No. 31 of 1970 amending certain provisions of Penal Law No. 16 of 1960.

    Article 20
    Criticism of the Amir of the State is not permitted, nor may any statement be attributed to him without prior written permission from the Amiri Diwan.

    Article 21
    The publication of anything that may:

    1. Demean or despise the State’s Constitution.
    2. Insult or demean judges or public prosecutors, or anything that may affect the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary, or that is declared secret by the courts or investigation authorities.
    3. Offend public morals or incite violations of public order, laws, or the commission of crimes, even if the crime has not occurred.
    4. Disclose confidential and official communications and publish agreements or treaties made by the Government of Kuwait before publishing them in the official gazette, except with special permission from the relevant ministry.
    5. Affect the value of the national currency or undermine confidence in the country’s economic situation, or report the bankruptcy of merchants, commercial companies, banks, or money exchangers, except with special permission from the competent court.
    6. Reveal what occurs in any meeting or what is recorded in documents, statements, decrees, or any papers or publications that the Constitution or any law declares secret or prohibits publication, and publication is limited to what is issued by official statements.
    7. Harm the dignity, lives, or religious beliefs of individuals, incite hatred or contempt against any segment of society, or publish information about their financial situations, or disclose secrets that may harm their reputation, wealth, or trade name.
    8. Intrude on the private lives of employees or those tasked with public service or attribute false statements or actions to them that may defame or harm them.
    9. Damage relations between Kuwait and other Arab or friendly countries through media campaigns.
    10. Cause a specialized newspaper to deviate from the purpose for which it was licensed.

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Taxes

  • Full rate of VAT

    Exemption Function: To facilitate the importation of educational, cultural, or scientific items

    There is no value-added tax (VAT) on books

  • Exemption or specific tax system for books

    General tax code Function: Free circulation of cultural goods

    There are no taxes on books or on the supply of books

  • Import duties on IT equipment

    General tax code Function: To facilitate the importation of educational, cultural, or scientific items

    There are no taxes.

  • Taxation on paper

    General tax code Function: To facilitate the importation of educational, cultural, or scientific items

    There are no taxes.

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Copyright law

  • WIPO Copyright Treaty

    Law Function: Protection of literary and artistic works

    “Copyright and Related Rights Law, Law No. 75 of 2019”

    “It includes the moral and financial rights of the author.”

    Comments

    “The State of Kuwait is a full member of the following agreements:”

    1. “The Arab Convention on Copyright, March 8, 1986, under Law No. 16 of 1986.”
    2. “The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), April 1994.”
    3. “The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Convention, January 7, 1998, under Law No. 2 of 1998.”
    4. “In 2014, Law No. 35 was issued, approving Kuwait’s accession to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.”

  • Protection of traditional cultural expressions

    Law Function: Protection of literary and artistic works

    “Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law, Law No. 75 of 2019.”

  • Regulation of the public domain

    Law Function: Protection of literary and artistic works

    “Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law, Law No. 75 of 2019

    The financial rights of the author over their work are protected for the duration of their lifetime and for fifty years after their death, starting from January 1 of the year following the year of death.”

  • Management of copyright

    Law Function: To regulate moral and patrimonial rights, and their duration

    Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law

  • Protection of heritage rights

    Law Function: To regulate moral and patrimonial rights, and their duration

    Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law, Law No. 75 of 2019.

  • Regulation of copyright and translation rights

    Law Function: To regulate moral and patrimonial rights, and their duration

    Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law, Law No. 75 of 2019.

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International standards and book identification

  • Obligations relating to book identification data (ISBN, ISSN, ISN, RPI, etc.)

    Regulation Function: To record

    “The institution responsible for ISBN numbers is the National Library of Kuwait.”

    “Three copies of the book must be deposited at the National Library of Kuwait.”

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Piracy of physical books and free book download sites

  • Opinions of professionals

    “The counterfeiting of books in print and their electronic piracy affects the book market. Some solutions to overcome these two phenomena include:”

    • “Holding accountable those who engage in counterfeiting, especially if it involves a printing press.”
    • “Implementing a law that criminalizes the publication of books in PDF format.”

     

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Market regulation

  • Opinions of professionals

    “The publishing scene in Kuwait is not characterized by a high degree of centralization.”

    • “The percentage of supplied books among the total books available in libraries: 50%.”
    • “The percentage of national publishing (with local capital) that receives public contracts for libraries: 0%.”
    • “The percentage of multinational or foreign publishers that receive public contracts for public and university libraries: 100%.”
    • “The percentage of national publishing (with local capital) that receives public contracts for school books: 0%.”

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Public procurement

  • Opinions of professionals

    There are no significant public purchases of books in local languages.

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Support for public reading and book distribution

  • Opinions of professionals

    There are no funds to support libraries or to assist in the travel of authors and/or publishers (to attend book fairs or other business missions abroad).

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