University graduates dominate Kuwaiti workforce at 48%
The share of Kuwaiti workers with university degrees rose slightly from 51% in 2023 to 53.1% in 2024, while those with intermediate certificates dropped from 9.6% to 8.6%.
• In the private sector, 51.5% of non-Kuwaiti workers are employed in accommodation and food services (19.3%), wholesale and retail trade (17.6%), and construction (14.6%).
A recent statistic revealed that university graduates make up the largest segment of Kuwaiti workers, comprising 48% of the total workforce as of September 30, 2024—equivalent to 216,560 Kuwaitis. This marks a 1.9% increase from 2023, when graduates accounted for 46.1%, Al Jarida newspaper reported.
According to the quarterly labor statistics report as of September 30, 2023, and 2024, issued by the Central Statistical Administration, the percentage of Kuwaiti workers with university degrees or higher remained relatively stable. However, there was a slight increase from 51% in September 2023 to 53.1% in September 2024, while the percentage of those with intermediate certificates declined from 9.6% to 8.6% over the same period.
As of 2024, Kuwaiti workers with secondary school certificates or equivalent accounted for 19.9% (89,924 workers), while 5.1% (23,000 workers) held postgraduate degrees. Additionally, 12.7% had post-secondary but non-university certificates.
The number of illiterate Kuwaiti workers stood at just two, while 184 workers could read and write. Those with only primary education represented 1.8% of the total workforce, totaling 8,199 employees.
In the private sector, 44.1% of the national workforce was concentrated in three key economic activities: financial and insurance services (17.8%), accommodation and food services (14.1%), and wholesale and retail trade, including motor vehicle and motorcycle repair (12.2%).
In contrast, Kuwaiti participation in sectors such as water supply, sanitation, waste management, electricity, gas, steam, air conditioning, arts, entertainment, recreation, agriculture, forestry, and fishing remained low.
For non-Kuwaiti workers, employment levels remained stable across most educational categories, with minor declines among those with intermediate qualifications (from 49.3% to 49.1%, totaling 853,710 workers) and those with primary education (from 7.7% to 7.3%, totaling 126,759 workers).
Additionally, 19,472 non-Kuwaiti workers could read and write. Excluding the family sector (domestic workers and similar roles), the non-Kuwaiti workforce comprised 328,589 males and 411,261 females, totaling 739,850 workers.
Among expatriate workers, 258,724 held university degrees, 407,800 had secondary school certificates or equivalents, and 40,900 had an education level between secondary and university. Those with postgraduate degrees numbered approximately 18,286.
In the private sector, 51.5% of non-Kuwaiti workers were concentrated in three key industries: accommodation and food services (19.3%), wholesale and retail trade, including motor vehicle and motorcycle repair (17.6%), and construction (14.6%).
In contrast, non-Kuwaiti participation was lower in sectors such as information and communications, arts and entertainment, electricity, gas, steam, air conditioning, and real estate.
