Kuwait plans gradual phase-out of 3,795 expat teachers in key specializations
Five-year replacement strategy targets surplus teaching fields
As part of ongoing efforts to regulate the educational labor market and reinforce the national job replacement policy, a new step is underway to restructure certain teaching specializations.
The move aims to better align education outputs with labor market needs while expanding employment opportunities for Kuwaiti nationals in the coming years.
According to the sources, the Civil Service Commission has requested that the Ministry of Education gradually terminate the services of non-Kuwaiti teachers across eight specializations where a surplus has been identified, reports Al-Rai daily.
These include Islamic education, physical education, French, home economics, art education, kindergarten, psychology, and social studies. The plan will be implemented over five years, beginning at the end of the 2026–2027 academic year.
The total number of teachers affected by the replacement policy stands at 3,795, including 3,757 female teachers and 38 male teachers. The phase-out will follow a structured timeline, targeting the complete elimination of surplus non-Kuwaiti staff in these fields by the end of the five-year period.
Under the proposed plan, 766 teachers will have their contracts terminated annually over the first four years, while 731 teachers will exit in the fifth and final year, completing the policy’s implementation.
Sources noted that this plan follows an earlier request by the Ministry of Education to halt new nominations of graduates in these specializations from Kuwait University’s College of Education and the College of Basic Education under the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training. Instead, hiring will be limited to graduates already in the pipeline, without opening applications for new candidates.
The Civil Service Commission based its decision on data from integrated workforce systems, which revealed a clear surplus in these subjects. A portion of this surplus is currently filled by non-Kuwaiti teachers, prompting the need for a gradual replacement approach.
Breakdown of teachers included in the replacement plan:
- Physical Education: 1,744 (male and female)
- Islamic Education: 1,083 (female)
- Kindergarten: 285 (female)
- Social Studies: 216 (female)
- French Language: 204 (female)
- Art Education: 148 (female)
- Home Economics: 91 (female)
- Psychology: 24 (female)
