The number of people in Qatar has dropped to just below 2.5 million this week, as thousands leave ahead of the Eid Al Fitr holiday.

According to new government figures, there were 2,477,113 people inside of the country as of June 30.

That’s down 110,451 people from May, when the population was at its all-time high of nearly 2.6 million, according to the Ministry of Development, Planning and Statistics (MDPS).

However, this June, Qatar was still home to 132,000 more people than at the same time last year.

What’s to come

For those looking forward to less traffic on the roads, population figures will likely keep dropping at the end of July and possibly August.

Everybody should be back after the Eid Al Adha holidays in September as many schools resume, however.

After years of blockbuster growth, government officials have forecast that the population will begin tapering off around the middle of next year, as various construction projects come to an end.

In one sign of this, state planners recently said the percentage of unskilled laborers in Qatar has dropped to its lowest level in nearly seven years. They called the development “promising.”

Thoughts?