Kuwait’s workforce grows by 3% amid expatriate labor surge

21/07/2025

Kuwait’s workforce grows by 3% amid expatriate labor surge

KUWAIT CITY, July 21: Official statistics issued by the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) showed an increase in the number of expatriate workers in the government and private sectors over the past year and a half, while the number of national workers in the private sector decreased and slightly increased in the government sector. The newspaper obtained a copy of the statistics, indicating that the number of Kuwaitis working in the government sector by mid-2025 reached 392,943 compared to 397,790 by the end of 2023 -- a decrease of 4,847.

In contrast, the number of expatriate workers in the government sector increased from 111,147 in December 2023 to 127,046 in mid-2025 -- an increase of 15,899. In the private sector, the statistics revealed the departure of 4,694 citizens over one year and a half; decreasing from 72,231 at the end of 2023 to 67,537 in the middle of this year. According to the statistics, the private sector witnessed a massive increase in the number of expatriates from 1,562,492 to 1,695,767 – an increase of 133,275.