KUWAIT, April 26 (KUNA) -- Kuwait's national fund for development small and medium projects is an important step to diversifying sources of income, as well as expanding industrial and productive revenues, Kuwait Finance House (KFH) said in a report Friday.

KFH-Research said the government's establishment of the fund was a move in "the right path." It expected the fund to directly play a role in solving one of the Kuwaiti economy's most challenging problems, which was high unemployment rates among youths, and the inflation of laborers in the public sector.

The fund can include other industries in the future, such as capital and technology projects, in addition to supporting the growth of the non-il sector on the medium and long terms through increasing private consumption, and improving the procedures of employment.

The revealed that the total number of industrial facilities in Kuwait was 5,496 manned by 124,000 employees and workers. Those facilities produce over KD 25 billion as total added value, and the facilites that have a maximum number of 20 workers represent 89 percent of total existing industries with 22 percent of the labor force, which is 28,000 employees and workers.

It is worth noting that the volume of investments of this segment of the facility was less than one percent of total additions on fized assets.

Small projects tend to be the dominating trend for commercial sector projects and non-financial services. Facilities that have less than 20 workers represent 97 percent of total existing facilities, and 32 percent of the total labor force work there and contribute by 20 percent of the added value produced by the sector.

The report stressed that small projects were one of the main channels that the private sector used to operate in various economic sectors, especially the services sector in Kuwait.

The support of this project is considered to be a form of support to the role of the private sector in the national economy, not to mention boosting production, implementing advanced technology, depending on oneself to meet the local demand for items and services, diversifying sources of income, boosting economic growth, developing non-oil sector where small and medium companies prosper, it added.