Chairman of the Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Muhammad Al-Sager says Kuwait has invested in the expertise of the expatriates who are between 60 and 70, and has the right to benefit from this expertise and the international studies have proven this group of workers cannot be dispensed with easily.
In a press statement to KUNA today, Sunday, Al-Sager said, Kuwait views the issue of reforming the employment sector and demographics as three-pronged national issue, most importantly the approach to reforming the state’s public budget and strengthen basic conditions to make Kuwait a productive country.
These dimensions lie in reforming the structure of employment and demographics, not through “fragmented and unthoughtful decisions’ but through integrated long-term plans based on Kuwait’s needs and its development model. He explained the second dimension revolves around the fact that most of the jobs done by the “sixty-year-old and above” cannot be done away with at least for the time being.
He noted, “It would have been more useful to direct efforts towards eliminating the phenomenon of visa trade which the country witnessed during the Corona pandemic — the shocking facts and dangerous repercussions disclosed because of the visa trade the health services were burdened and the costs could have been reduced to at least half but it is still a single decision that falls outside the context of the comprehensive plan to reform the demographic structure.”
Al-Sager said that ‘expelling’ expatriate workers from the country is surprising; exempting the holders of the Palestinian nationality is a generous and appreciative approach, and including other Arab nationalities who live in their respective countries in harsh conditions will be a welcome sign.
He went on to say, “I very much hope that the political leadership will have a final word on this issue that will bring matters back to their scientific track in light of Kuwait’s interest and the values of justice and humanity.”