Unemployment in Qatar is a reality Tuesday, 27 April 2010 16:57

Not even the most pessimistic of people would think that unemployment would one day exist in Qatar, as we are one of the richest countries in the world, and Qatar’s riches are far and wide. But against all expectations, along with economic expansion, we are also experiencing unemployment.

Batches of graduates finish their university studies and line up in waiting areas in search of work, and these areas have become crowded with male and female Qatari university graduates, and those from high school whose GPAs don’t afford them university-level entry. Of those high school graduates, some have come up against the steel barrier known as the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which they did not learn properly in schools, and have now become victims of below-par education. That leads them to undergo English courses in order to be able to attend universities. Some of these graduates are helpless against the huge sums of money required to attain such lessons due to limited income or the lack of availability of such courses in their neighbourhoods. There are also those who are unable to complete their education after leaving school at very basic levels, and some will suggest that they enlist in the army or police, but even these institutions have developed a thirst for higher academic qualifications than in the past. Even if these obstacles are overcome, what is to become of Qatari females with education levels that of high school or less? Now, unemployment is growing faster than ever with thousands of unemployed, including skilled workers, pushed into early retirement though they are at the height of their youth.

What is urged is the intervention of the concerned authorities to prevent the epidemic of unemployment from spreading and enhance the equality of employment. A study should be conducted to assess the causes of unemployment, and putting an end to the so-called “wasta” that has spread in our small society in modern times. In the past, until around 1990, each Qatari university graduate received a salary until becoming employed. This was a time with easy access to jobs, and Qatar enjoyed fewer resources than today.

There is no harm in providing Qatari graduates with a reasonable salary until they find an appropriate job to make a living from. This is not new and was applied in most countries of the developed world to fight unemployment, preventing many social ills that may spread in our society. The first of which is debt, then bribery, theft, and finally, drugs and corruption.

Concern for citizens is necessary, for they are the nation’s pillars of support.