The Absence of a National Archives and Legislation: The Vacuum of Records and Archives Management in Kuwait

Abstract

ABSTRACT This case study discusses the absence of a national archives and archives legislation in Kuwait and the shortcomings of Kuwait's Archives Regulation, introduced in 1971 to manage the government's records and archives. Since then, there has been a series of ineffective efforts and little support by the government to establish a national archives and to enact proper archives legislation. As a result, no comprehensive framework exists to govern records and archives management nor does a national repository for preserving and providing access to archives. The author conducted several semistructured interviews with ministry employees and relied on local newspaper articles that indicate a vacuum in managing records and archives across government ministries. The study explains the failures of the Kuwaiti government's efforts and calls for the establishment of a national archives and the enactment of archives legislation. It argues that the most effective approach to establishing a national archives in Kuwait is for the government to amend the constitution and for the amir (ruler) to issue a decree emphasizing the pivotal role of a national archives in ensuring government accountability, legitimacy, and credibility. The national archives would standardize procedures and guidelines and oversee records and archives management. These governmental actions have proven successful in other Gulf countries that have established national archives. The study also calls for the introduction of records management and archival studies programs in Kuwait's academic institutions to train records managers and archivists to oversee government ministries’ records and for future staffing of the national archives.