During the time under consideration, there was a boom in the construction of infrastructure in Kuwait. Abdullah al-Barghash, the owner of the pro-opposition television station Al-Youm, Ahmad Jaber alShemmari, opposition activist Saad al-Ajmi, and a number of Islamist activists lost their citizenship rights in 2014.
However, the court reinstated Abdullah al-Barghash's citizenship in May 2017 and al-Shemmari's citizenship in October 2016. Following the censorship board of the Ministry of Information's decision to exclude 948 books from the 43rd Kuwait International Literary Festival, activists staged protests in the streets twice in September 2018 in response to the country's growing censorship. Another 10% are called "Bidoon," which means "without. Despite frequently having lived in Kuwait all of their lives, Bidoon have been denied full citizenship rights (such as access to social welfare, favorable employment, and voting rights) for decades. However, Kuwait City's infrastructure was significantly damaged by severe floods in November 2018, including roads, bridges, and some of the city's newly constructed infrastructure. Water and sanitation are almost universally available. Since the middle of the 18th century, the Al Sabah dynasty has ruled Kuwait, which gained full independence from the United Kingdom on June 19, 1961. However, during the peak of activism from 2011 to 2014, political protests and street demonstrations, which were once common, have become uncommon.
