Amid GCC-wide efforts to reduce a dependency on expat labor, a new poll illuminates some of the challenges facing nationalization efforts.

According to the more than 2,000 people surveyed across the six GCC countries by Bayt.com, Khaleejis are perceived to be more expensive but less trained and less experienced than their expat counterparts.

That said, some 50 percent of those surveyed feel nationalization policies are effective, and about the same amount say the finding qualified and experienced local talent is easy. 

The subject of Qatarization made headlines in March after a Labor Ministry official warned private companies to set aside 20 percent of its jobs for nationals or “face the music.”

Few Qataris in private sector

According to the Qatar Statistics Authority, non-Qataris constitute 99.7 percent of the country’s private sector workforce. This is despite a 1997 Emiri decree that nationals account for one fifth of employees at companies in the private sector.

As affirmed in this latest study, some of the challenges to hiring more locals in the private sector include that government jobs are easier to get, pay better and entail shorter workdays; and finally, that there simply aren’t enough Qataris to fill the quotas that have been set.

Here are some more highlights:

• To facilitate nationalization, 24 percent said give nationals access to better educational and vocational training facilities; 22 percent urged improving coordination between the government and the private sector; 16 percent favored better incentives for the private sector from the government; and 15 percent favored better coordination between educational institutes and companies.

• Some 36 percent said the best way to find national talent is through dedicated regional jobsites. Social media (24 percent) and university career fairs (12.3 percent) were also popular. But newspaper ads (7 percent), alumni centers (6 percent) and local job fairs (7 percent) were seen as less effective.

Read more of the results here.

Thoughts?