May 15 (KUNA) -- The private sector's share of Kuwait's total labor force grew to 20 percent in 2009, from 18 percent in the previous year, a report issued by the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) showed here on Saturday.
The country's population topped 3.84 million people by the end of 2009, growing by 1.3 percent on an annual basis, according to NBK's economic brief titled "Kuwait's Population and Labor Force." The number of Kuwaiti nationals continued to increase but at a slower rate than the average of the previous five years.
The number of non-Kuwaiti residents increased by 0.5 percent. There were 1.
11 million Kuwaitis, or 32 percent of the total population, said the report, citing figures of the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI).
The slow growth of Kuwait's population since 2008 was caused in large part by the much slower growth of the expatriate population, due to the fallout from the economic crisis.
The number of expatriates grew only 11,700 in 2009, versus an average yearly gain of 109,000 in the years 2001-08. Nearly 1.2 million people were added to Kuwait's population over the last 10 years, of them 73 percent were expatriates, reflecting the strong economic growth.
Kuwait's total adult population (over 20 years of age) reached 2.25 million, 65 percent of the total population. For Kuwaitis, the data show that 49 percent are under 20-years old. Also the Kuwaiti population splits almost evenly into men and women at 51-49 percent.
In 2009, labor force growth in Kuwait remained weak, with the number increasing by a small 0.3 percent to reach 2.1 million. For expatriate workers, the numbers were up in the public and domestic (household) sectors, while they fell slightly in the private sector.
The number of employed Kuwaitis rose by over 19,000 compared with 15,000 in 2008. Nearly 60 percent of these jobs were in the private sector with Kuwaitis employed in the sector reaching 68,200.
Thus, in 2009, 20 percent of Kuwaitis worked in the private sector, up from 18 percent in 2008 and 16 percent in 2007.
The rising private sector share is partly the result of the National Labor Support law of 2000. The law provides Kuwaitis working in the private sector with the same benefits available in the public sector. Of course, the expansion of the private sector during the boom years was also a helping factor.
Crude oil production and manufacturing, including refining, employ eight percent of nationals in the workforce. The electricity, water and gas ('utilities') industries mainly employ Kuwaiti nationals, who represent 83 percent of the workforce in this sector.
A breakdown of the top 10 largest jobs by professions shows that the biggest gains by Kuwaitis, 88 percent of total net gains, were in clerical and secretarial positions, which represent one-third of all jobs held by Kuwaitis.
In conclusion, the Kuwaiti national population is still growing near its three percent rate.
On the employment side, private sector employment of Kuwaitis continues apace. The current 20 percent share of Kuwaitis in the private sector is bound to rise further as the trend continues and as it is reinforced by upcoming measures mentioned in the current five-year economic development plan. - Kuna