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Migration Policies Across the GCC: Challenges in Reforming the Kafala

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Migration Policies Across the GCC: Challenges in Reforming the Kafala MIGRATION POLICY CENTRE Migration Policies across the GCC: Challenges in Reforming the Kafala Abdoulaye Diop, Trevor Johnston, and Kien Trung Le Chapter in the volume: Migration to the Gulf: Policies in Sending and Receiving Countries edited by Philippe Fargues and Nasra M. Shah 2 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 3 BOOK CHAPTER This is a chapter in the volume: Philippe Fargues and Nasra M. Shah (eds.), Migration to the Gulf: Policies in Sending and Receiving Countries, Gulf Labour Markets and Migration (GLMM) Programme, Gulf Research Center Cambridge, 2018. For other chapters and the entire volume, please refer to www.gulfmigration.eu. Terms of use: By using any information from Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population Programme (GLMM), the user: (a) acknowledges having read the legal notices concerning copyright, terms of use and disclaimers and agrees to comply with them in full; (b) agrees to assure himself/herself whether and to what extent copyrights exist on information published by GLMM prior to using this information; (c) agrees not to use information published by GLMM in any way that would result in the infringement of existing copyrights; (d) agrees to always follow precisely and fully the citation instructions provided by GLMM. GLMM publications may be copied and distributed only in their entirety and together with any copyright statements they may contain, as long as they are properly attributed and used for non-commercial, educational, or public policy purposes. Photographs, logos, graphs, tables or any other images from GLMM publications may not be used separately. Copyright: © European University Institute (EUI) and Gulf Research Center (GRC), 2018. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of European University Institute and Gulf Research Center. Disclaimer: The Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population Programme (GLMM) cannot be held responsible in any way for the correctness and accuracy of the information and data published on its website, on paper and in other forms, including the database and its publications. GLMM strongly encourages users to verify the correctness and accuracy of the information and data with the source, which is always indicated with the greatest accuracy and detail possible. Any opinions expressed in any GLMM publication are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily state or reflect the opinions or position of the Migration Policy Centre, the European University Institute or the Gulf Research Center. Support: The Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population Programme (GLMM) receives support from the International Migration Initiative (IMI) of the Open Society Foundations (OSF), the National Priority Research Program (NPRP) of the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP- Kuwait) and relies on the institutional resources of GLMM partners. 2 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 3 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.grc.net Gulf Labour Markets, Migration, and Population (GLMM) Programme E-mail: [email protected] Website: gulfmigration.eu 2 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 3 Gulf Research Center E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.grc.net Jeddah Geneva Cambridge Gulf Research Center Gulf Research Center Gulf Research Centre 19 Rayat Al- Itehad St. Foundation Cambridge P.O. Box 2134 WMO Building - 2nd Floor Centre of Islamic Studies Avenue de la Paix, 7bis University of Cambridge Jeddah 21451 CH- 1211 Geneva Sidgwick Avenue Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Switzerland Cambridge CB3 9DA, UK First published 2018 Gulf Research Centre Cambridge ISBN: 978-1-909864-22-1 Cover Photo: Imco Brouwer 4 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 5 About the Gulf Research Center The Gulf Research Center (GRC) is an independent research institute founded in July 2000 by Dr. Abdulaziz Sager, a Saudi businessman, who realised, in a world of rapid political, social and economic change, the importance of pursuing politically neutral and academically sound research about the Gulf region and disseminating the knowledge obtained as widely as possible. The Center is a non-partisan think-tank, education service provider and consultancy specializing in the Gulf region. The GRC seeks to provide a better understanding of the challenges and prospects of the Gulf region. 6 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 7 About the Gulf Labour Markets, Migration, and Population (GLMM) Programme The Gulf Labour Markets, Migration, and Population (GLMM) Programme (http://gulfmigration.eu) is an inde- pendent, non-partisan, non-profit joint initiative of a major Gulf think tank, the Gulf Research Center (GRC - Jeddah, Geneva, Cambridge), and a globally renowned university, the European University Institute (EUI - Florence). GLMM provides data, analyses, and recommendations contributing to the understanding and management of labour migration in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, engaging with all stakeholders. 6 Gulf Labour Markets, Migration and Population (GLMM) Programme Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 7 A. Diop, T. Johnston, and K.T. Le: Challenges in Reforming the Kafala III Migration Policies across the GCC: Challenges in Reforming the Kafala Abdoulaye Diop*, Trevor Johnston**, and Kien Trung Le*** Abstract: Much of the debate over immigration policy in the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, and Qatar) revolves around the kafala, or sponsorship system. In recent years, scholars, activists, and policymakers have all debated the urgent need for kafala reform. In its current form, the system is not sustainable. Initially designed to ensure a steady supply of labour for economic development, the kafala system has come under growing criticism from non-governmental and human rights organisations. Such criticism reached new heights when Qatar was awarded the rights to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. With this decision, Qatar and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries were exposed to greater scrutiny for their labour conditions and policies. While all GCC countries share a * Abdoulaye Diop is Research Associate Professor and Head of the Research Department at the Qatar University (QU) Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI). ** Trevor Johnston is an Associate Political Scientist at the RAND Corporation in Arlington, Virginia. *** Kien Trung Le is Research Associate Professor at the Qatar University (QU) Social and Economic Survey Research Institute (SESRI). Gulf Research Centre Cambridge 33 Migration to the Gulf: Policies in Sending and Receiving Countries variation of the kafala system, each country has attempted to implement a different set of reforms at various times over the last decade. Results from these reforms have been marginal and limited in scope. In most cases, the reform agenda has faced significant opposition from a coalition of domestic groups and economic interests that underlie public support for the status quo. This chapter provides an overview of the kafala system in the GCC countries and the different reforms that have been attempted. We draw on original survey data from across the GCC to better understand the varying conditions across these countries and how interests shape the challenges to reform. Finally, we return to the motivating case of Qatar, which has recently implemented changes to its labour laws. Using quarterly survey data, we explore the degree to which citizens’ perceptions and support for these reforms have changed over time. We conclude by drawing lessons for the broader GCC and speculate on the opportunities for reform in the future. Introduction The kafala has become increasingly costly and more difficult to sustain over time. Administrative challenges and labour market inefficiencies have increased the economic costs of the kafala, while non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and international media have exposed systemic abuse, hurting the Gulf states’ reputations. The Gulf states continue to fight a losing battle for a system that can no longer meets its basic goals. Partial and failed enforcement has resulted in efficiency losses for the entire economy. Compounding these losses, basic incentive problems generate negative externalities for domestic labour markets and investors. In concert with these many economic costs, domestic pressures and international condemnation pose significant political challenges to the ruling regimes. And yet despite this hard reality, the system persists throughout the Gulf. Given such severe and growing costs, the question then is, how has the kafala lasted this long and resisted reform? A central tension underlies the societies and political economy of the Gulf today. The presence of a large, permanent foreign population produces myriad social problems. But this population is indispensable to the economy and citizens’ quality of life. Given such a tension, the regimes of the Gulf states find themselves in the unenviable position of having to reform without broad
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