Economic development

This file contains correspondence relating to:

• Details of Kuwait's aid programme for the Trucial States and progress so far (21)
• Question of involving UN technical assistance in the Trucial States, raised by the outgoing Resident Representative of the UN Technical Assistance Board T O P Lilliefelt (22)
• Reports that Head of the Technical Section of the Kuwait Municipality Abdul Muhsin As Zaben has left for Ajman to study the possibility of establishing a municipality there (23)
• Status of development in Abu Dhabi, where near deadlock has been reached. The Ruler Sheikh Shakhbut Bin Sultan Al Nahyan is deemed to be obstructing multiple projects, including the building of a new causeway and the construction of customs sheds and warehouses. Sheikh Shakhbut's failure to pay consultants and CAT Company has also caused problems. The Political Agent J E H Boustead expresses revulsion at the consulting engineers Sir William Halcrow & Partners' acceptance of Sheikh Shakhbut's every whim rather than adherence to the development plan (24, 26)
• Several Trucial States Development Scheme (TSDS) indents [enclosed] on the Crown Agents. This includes motor vehicles for Ras Al Khaimah Hospital and machinery for the Agricultural Trials Station (25)
• Enquiry by the Swiss Legation to the British Bank of the Middle East about the alleged shady activities in Sharjah of Swiss national Gaston Cavin (27)
• Problems in connection with virements and savings in the TSDS budget: what to do about savings under various heads? and what to do about overspendings? (28)
• Requirements to get Abu Dhabi's new jetty functioning. Sheikh Shakhbut previously ignored consultants, but has now entrusted the Manager of the Ottoman Bank David Gillespie to purchase the necessary equipment (30)
• Sheikh Shakhbut's instructions to Beirut businessman Victor Hashem to proceed with a new development plan for Abu Dhabi in association with German firm Seibert Company. The British are pleased that Sheikh Shakhbut is taking positive action, but frustrated that work has not gone to a British firm. German competition prompts Britain to consider a change of approach (31-33, 35-36, 40)
• Proposals for a new causeway and jetty for Ras Al Khaimah by Halcrow & Partners and the Ruler Sheikh Saqr Bin Mohammad Al Qasimi's request that HMG provide a loan (34)
• Sheikh Shakhbut's complaints that the consulting engineers built the jetty and causeway without showing him adequate plans in advance (37)
• Rumours that Victor Hashem is still associated with Darwish and that the latter is providing part of the financial backing for the development programme (38)
• Information about the German firm Seibert (39)