A number of cooperative societies reportedly move to prevent the entry of expatriates for shopping and buying products during the holy month of Ramadan under the pretext that a large number of expatriate shoppers at co-ops leads to overbuying of Ramadan products sold at discounted prices, says local reports.

Meshaal Al-Manae, Head of the CPA, emphasized that excluding expatriates from any cooperative society and limiting product access to citizens only is against the law. Al-Manae stated that there is no valid reason for cooperative societies to refuse sales to any consumer, be they citizens or expatriates. He added that the consumer protection law safeguards against such decisions and that cooperative societies, like other commercial establishments, must adhere to the market laws established by the commerce ministry.

In response to social media rumors about restricting sales to non-Kuwaiti consumers, an official source from the National Guard Society clarified that their organization welcomes all segments of Kuwaiti society, including both citizens and expatriates.