As Kuwait veers between political crisis and paralysis, some things seem set to remain constant, observers say: a dearth of reforms and investment, and stultifying bureaucracy.

The Kuwaiti cabinet resigned last month

In spite of its oil wealth and strategic position at the top of the Gulf, Kuwait last year attracted only $123m in foreign direct investment, according to the United Nations’ 2008 World Investment Report, the lowest of all Middle East and north African countries except for the Palestinian territories. Even Yemen attracted almost four times as much investment. Qatar, the second least popular destination for foreign capital in the six states of the petroleum-rich Gulf Co-operation Council, received 10 times more FDI than Kuwait.