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.