Kuwait’s National Assembly committee has approved a draft law proposing a quota for the number of foreign workers that live in the country, designed to change the country's demographic ratio in favour of Kuwaitis.
The bill states that the Indian expatriate community – one of the largest in the country – should not exceed 15 per cent of the national population, which means about 800,000 of them could be required to leave the country.
Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al Khaled Al Sabah said last month that the country would like the number of foreign workers to drop from 70 per cent of the population to 30 per cent. This would mean a cut of about 2.5 million expat workers.
Foreigners account for nearly 3.4 million of Kuwait’s 4.8 million people, and that’s a “big imbalance, and we have a future challenge to redress this imbalance,” Sheikh Sabah told the top editors of local newspapers.
The bill will now be referred to the concerned committee for consideration
In June, state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and its subsidiaries said the employment of foreign workers would be banned for the year 2020-21. There are similar plans for government and civil service jobs.
Last year, MP Safa Al Hashem said it was essential to have Kuwaitis number more than 50 per cent of the country’s population.
Parliamentary elections are scheduled for later this year, and anti-foreign worker rhetoric is attractive to some voters, especially when it concerns well-paid government jobs. At the end of 2019, only 19 per cent of the Kuwaiti workforce was in the private sector.
Foreigners have also accounted for the majority of Kuwait’s coronavirus cases as the disease spread among migrant workers living in overcrowded labour camps.
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SPECS
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Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
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Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
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Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
If you go
The flights
Etihad (etihad.com) flies from Abu Dhabi to Luang Prabang via Bangkok, with a return flight from Chiang Rai via Bangkok for about Dh3,000, including taxes. Emirates and Thai Airways cover the same route, also via Bangkok in both directions, from about Dh2,700.
The cruise
The Gypsy by Mekong Kingdoms has two cruising options: a three-night, four-day trip upstream cruise or a two-night, three-day downstream journey, from US$5,940 (Dh21,814), including meals, selected drinks, excursions and transfers.
The hotels
Accommodation is available in Luang Prabang at the Avani, from $290 (Dh1,065) per night, and at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort from $1,080 (Dh3,967) per night, including meals, an activity and transfers.
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