Population by nationality group, country of birth (in Kuwait/ outside Kuwait) and sex (2012)

Place of birth		In Kuwait			Outside Kuwait			TOTAL
Nationality group	males	females	total	males	females	total	males	females	total
Kuwaitis	574.871	577.686	1.152.557	20.494	39.385	59.879	595.365	617.071	1.212.436
Arabs	196.786	177.498	374.284	494.095	196.228	690.323	690.881	373.726	1.064.607
Asians	47.985	42.660	90.645	937.236	412.630	1.349.866	985.221	455.290	1.440.511
Africans	493	534	1.027	6.294	60.042	66.336	6.787	60.576	67.363
Europeans	1.188	979	2.167	6.019	5.348	11.367	7.207	6.327	13.534
North Americans	2.535	2.184	4.719	11.136	6.353	17.489	13.671	8.537	22.208
South Americans	350	241	591	477	380	857	827	621	1.448
Australians- Oceanians	328	264	592	546	483	1.029	874	747	1.621
Total non-Kuwaitis	249.665	224.360	474.025	1.455.803	681.464	2.137.267	1.705.468	905.824	2.611.292
Grand total	824.536	802.046	1.626.582	1.476.297	720.849	2.197.146	2.300.833	1.522.895	3.823.728

Source: PACI

 

 

ANNEXED NOTE

 

1. Characteristics of data and definitions

 

The source of data used here is the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI), an independant government body in charge of :

1- centralising all population and labour force data in order to manage a fully computerised population register

2- issuing mandatory civil identification cards to every resident of the country, regardless of age and nationality.

 

The other source of demographic and socioeconomic data on Kuwait is the Central Statistical Office (CSO), operating within the Planning Ministry. The CSO has conducted ten population and housing censuses since its inception in 1957.

Since 1995 a marked discrepancy was witnessed between PACI’ and CSO’ population figures. PACI’ database is connected electronically with other administrations and bodies registering demographic events and professional/ residency issues (births and death; departures and arrivals; end of service, residency and ID deliveries, etc.).

PACI’s records of residents’ movements is thus regularly updated, which limits the risk of population overcount. Therefore, it is more likely that residents were undercounted during CSO- Ministry of Planning’s census operations (see: Shah, N. Population of Kuwait. Structure and Dynamics, Kuwait: Kuwait University Academic Publication Council, 2010, chapter 1).

 

(a) Kuwaiti: the Kuwaiti nationality rests upon a document of Kuwaiti nationality or a certificate proving Kuwaiti nationality issued by the Ministry of Interior of Kuwait.

 

(b) Non-Kuwaiti: his/ her nationality is determined by the name of the State which issued the passport. The foreign national also entered Kuwait legally and has a stamp of residence.

This category includes the Bidoon, a category of stateless persons living in the Emirate. Kuwait’s Bidoon population originates from three broad categories:

1) those whose ancestors failed to apply for nationality or lacked necessary documentation at the time of Kuwait’s independence in 1961;

2) those recruited to work in Kuwait’s army or police force during the 1960s who permanently settled in Kuwait, along with their families;

3) children of Kuwaiti mothers and stateless or foreign fathers (see Human Rights Watch. Prisoners of the Past. Kuwaiti Bidun and the Burden of Statelessness, June 2011, p. 3).

 

(c) Nationality group: collected according to the nationality of the head of the household.

Nationalities are grouped according to specific features common to certain population subgroups: language, geographic origin, etc. or according to internationally recognized categories such as: (Arab / non-Arab Asian countries / non-Arab African countries; European countries … etc.).

 

2. Institution which provides data

 

The Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI)

 

3. Period of data coverage: December 2012

 

The database is updated three times a year and the website presents only the most recent data.

 

4. Data availability

 

The statistics section of PACI’s website (http://www.paci.gov.kw/en/ (English); http://www.paci.gov.kw/ (Arabic)) provides population and socio-economic data broken down by nationality (Kuwaiti/ non-Kuwaiti). Some data are displayed by nationality groups.

Analytical tables and data crosstabulations are available for download in PDF, html, .png and Excel (.csv) formats.

 

Date of access: June 2013.