Fewer expats in public sector as Bahraini hiring rises

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Fewer expatriates are working in Bahrain’s public sector, with the number now at 5,686, according to the Civil Service Bureau. This marks a drop of 25 per cent since 2019.

The Bureau linked the fall to ongoing efforts to appoint qualified Bahrainis to roles currently held by non-citizens.

When a government body requests to renew a contract for an expatriate, the Bureau first checks if a Bahraini is available for the job.

Names

If one is, it sends over a list of names to consider instead of extending the contract.

In a reply to a question from MP Mahmood Mirza Fardan, the Bureau stated that 35,670 Bahrainis are employed on permanent contracts in ministries and public bodies covered by the Civil Service Law.

This makes up 99.8 per cent of all Bahrainis working in these institutions.

Only 0.2 per cent of the Bahraini workforce in government is employed on temporary contracts.

Roles

Most of them are at the Ministry of Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture, where roles are linked to the terms of municipal councils.

The remainder are spread across other departments. All are included in the government pension system.

There are also 152 Bahrainis working part-time across various ministries and agencies. These staff help carry out certain tasks or support ongoing projects.