The Kuwait government developed a plan to address the defect in the demographics and reviewed by the Minister of Social Affairs and Economic Affairs Mariam Al-Aqeel yesterday during the Parliamentary Human Resources Development Committee meeting.

The plan requires removing 520,000 expatriates from the country. The plan did not set a timetable for implementation.

The plan is divided into the short, medium and long term.

The short term plan is to remove 360,000 expatriates which include the deportation of 120,000 workers who are in violation of the law, the reduction of around 150,000 employee and their family members who are over 60 years old or suffering from chronic diseases and getting rid of around 90,000 illiterate or marginal workers.

In the medium and long term plan, the government is targeting a gradual replacement of 160,000 jobs in the private and public sectors.

The medium and long term solutions included employing technology and digital transformation to reduce the dependency on expatriate workers. This also suggests smart recruitment for expatriate workers by dealing with international agencies for recruitment / professional qualifications system.

The committee asked the government to clarify the timetables for implementing its plan. The committee will complete its report next week before submitting it to the council for approval.