KUWAIT CITY, Aug 28: The issue of the country’s demographics has returned to the fore and the concerned authorities are determined to look at the issue from the quantitative and qualitative point of view – the program that was disrupted due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, including the file of “modifying the composition”, which was entrusted to the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Integrity Jamal Al-Jalawi to complete the work based on a decision of the Prime Minister, reports Al-Qabas daily. The starting point in opening the file to complete the requirements of resolving its problems was in reviving the project to attract skilled foreign workers, as the Public Authority for Manpower held coordination meetings with the authorities concerned with implementing the project, which is to test expatriate workers in two stages.

Responsible sources told Al-Qabas that the Public Authority for Manpower has launched a series of meetings with relevant government agencies, to set a path for implementing the plans prepared to modify the demographic structure, which will be in two steps, the first targeting new workers coming to the country, and the second linked to those in the labor market.

The sources stated that among the parties that will work to implement the new plan regarding amending the composition, besides the authority, are Kuwait University, the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Interior, in addition to the oil sector, as well as looking into the future of partnerships with associations of public interest.

The sources pointed to agreements that were presented earlier and are ready to be signed, regarding the start of applying professional tests to newcomers to the country, especially those related to their work in the engineering, accounting and petroleum sectors, stressing that the final signing of them between Kuwait and other countries is on the implementation table soon.

The sources indicated that the agreements will start from Egypt and India, given the readiness in the two countries, in terms of the availability of accredited training centers, and parties capable of implementing the Kuwaiti initiative to ensure access to the experiences and certificates of the worker and be tested before obtaining a work permit and arriving in Kuwait.

The sources stated that the first executive steps will take place in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Kuwaiti consulates abroad, and include holding a series of professional tests in designated buildings or in cooperation with accredited training and education centers, which will be determined by the responsible authorities, such as “Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training”, so that the test result is the key to obtaining a work permit and recruitment to Kuwait or not.