Kuwait has implemented an employment policy dubbed “Kuwaitisation” which will enable 1,211 jobs in the country’s oil sector to be filled by Kuwaitis this year and not foreign nationals as the country seeks to provide more jobs to its citizens.
According to the report, the biggest share of the “to-be-Kuwaitised” jobs are in the Kuwait Oil Company with 629, followed by the Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company with 507.
This move was made by Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior (MoI) in a substantial move in its endeavours to reshape its labour force composition as it discontinued the employment contracts of over 800 expatriate workers.
Nairametrics learns that this policy will enable Kuwait in the state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) and its subsidiaries to step up efforts to create jobs for citizens and redress the demographic imbalance.
The overarching goal is to enable Kuwaiti authorities to enhance measures against illegal foreign residents, with a stern warning that any expatriate found harboring an unlawful resident will also face deportation.
According to reports from Al Qabas newspaper, Kuwait deported a record-breaking 42,000 expatriates last year for violations of residence and labour laws, as well as involvement in criminal activities.
Increasing Kuwaiti manpower
- Kuwait’s public sector employs around 483,200 individuals, with foreigners accounting for 23% of this workforce—the highest proportion among Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
- Data from the Kuwait Public Authority for Civil Information, as of February 2024, indicates that the combined government and private sector workforce stands at 1.9 million, with 75% employed in the private sector.
- According to a recent census, foreigners constitute approximately 3.2 million of Kuwait’s 4.6 million population.
- Meanwhile, subsidiaries of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, namely the Oil Kuwait Gulf Company and the Kuwait Petroleum International, are presently exploring an employment strategy for Kuwaiti nationals in collaboration with KPC.
- In recent years, Kuwait has intensified its efforts to generate employment opportunities for its citizens, reduce reliance on foreign workers, and tackle the demographic imbalance within the country.