Drastic cut in visas reduces expat count:
‘45,000 leave Kuwait’
KUWAIT CITY, Nov 14: Around 45,000 expatriate workers left Kuwait this year, while the number of new work permits issued reached 90,000, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor Undersecretary Mohammad Al-Kandari.
Al-Kandari revealed the ministry has taken several measures over the years to reduce the population of foreign workers from two million to 1.2 million. He said the population of Kuwaitis increased from 31 to 34 percent and the number of new work permits declined from 179,000 in 2007 to 72,000 in 2008. He attributed this remarkable drop to the measures taken by the ministry to limit the issuance of new work permits to expatriates with the skills required by the local labor market.
Asked about the shortage of staff in various labor departments, Al-Kandari hopes the problem will be settled soon, especially since the ministry has asked the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to find ways to encourage citizens to work in the labor and social care sectors.
Around 45,000 left and 90,000 were issued work permits... doesn't that make 45,000 additional people? The government isn't doing a lot to cut the number of expats. The population of expats will continue to increase until it's so crowded no one will be able to leave their homes. At least the UAE nationals can run away to Abu Dhabi or surrounding areas, Kuwaiti citizens have no where to run. Next thing we will see is Kuwaiti citizens giving up their nationalities for other GCC countries.
I know several citizens who are really thinking of leaving Kuwait because of overcrowding and high prices. Not everyone will be able to afford a house here without having to pay until they die and then that payment will probably be handed down to their kids. Future of Kuwait looks kind of bleak.
i will only say BOL "best of luck", i hope they can stand by themself...its only expats who runs this country..look at the kuwait airways they cant run this by themself and also when we visit different ministries we saw them hardly working for 2 hours...there are some kuwaitis who do work..but "some" it does not mean that kuwait is ready to stand wihout expats..
ReplyDeleteNo Kuwaiti really works and Kuwait could not survive without all the expats. I see that there are a lot of changes happening. But, it is hard to make lazy people do anything when they know all they have to do is wait for a the check to hit the bank. When the idea of people actually having to work happens they cry for more money. Spoiled beyond Spoiled.
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