The Central Agency for Public Tenders (CAPT) has approved — by a two-thirds majority — the Ministry of Finance's request to contract directly with Wafra Real Estate Company, a subsidiary of the Public Institution for Social Security, to manage, operate, and maintain Souq Sharq (Waterfront – Phase 3).

The ministry specified that the contract with the company will be for one year, with a value of KD 1.25 million, in accordance with Article 18 of the Public Tenders Law.

The decision was made despite opposition from a CAPT member and a representative of the National Fund for Small and Medium Enterprise Development.

Souq Sharq, inaugurated in 1998, is considered one of the most prominent shopping malls in the country.

It was previously managed by the National Real Estate Company under a B.O.T. contract and was vacated in February 2023.

After the Ministry of Finance completed the evacuation of the mall’s management, it handed over the property to Wafra Real Estate in March 2023.