Migrant Labor in the Persian Gulf

Kamrava Mehran, Babar Zahra

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In some countries of the Persian Gulf as much as 85 to 90 per cent of the population is made-up of expatriate workers.Unsurprisingly, all of the concerned states spend inordinate amounts of their political energies managing the armies of migrant labourers employed in their countries, and there are equally fundamental social, cultural, and economic consequences involved as well. Despite the pervasive and farreaching nature of the phenomenon, to date there have not been any comprehensive, easily accessible studies of labour migration in the Persian Gulf. Migrant Labour in the Persian Gulf is a multi-disciplinary examination of the manifold causes, nature, processes, and consequences of labour migration into the Persian Gulf. It critically analyses the effects of migration for native communities, looking at the types and functions of informal and at times formal bi-national and multinational networks that emerge from and in turn sustain migration patterns over time, the role and functions of recruitment agencies, and the values, behaviours, and plans of migrants workers prior to and after setting off for the Persian Gulf.

About the Author

Mehran Kamrava is Professor and Director of the Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service in Qatar. He is the author of a number of books, including, most recently, "The Modern Middle East: A Political History Since the First World War"; "Qatar: Small State, Big Politics"; and "Iran's Intellectual Revolution".

Zahra Babar is Associate Director for Research at the Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service in Qatar. Previously, she served with the International Labor Organization and the United Nations Development Program. Her current research interests include rural development, migration labor policies, and citizenship in the Persian Gulf states, and GCC regional integration. Babar's recent publications include "The Cost of Belonging: Citizenship Construction in the State of Qatar" (Middle East Journal, 2014), as well as "Food Security in the Middle East" (co-edited with Suzi Mirgani), and "Migrant Labor in the Persian Gulf" (co-edited with Mehran Kamrava).

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