Gulf States Archive

Editor’s Note: This article is part of an ongoing series on immigration and integration policy around the world. The kingdom is looking to address high youth unemployment by pushing for the "Saudization" of certain industries, particularly in the private sector. Saudi Arabia announced plans late last month to ban foreign workers from certain jobs in the hospitality sector. The move is the latest in a series of policy shifts designed to tackle the kingdom’s high unemployment rate by boosting private sector hiring for Saudi citizens, after many years of relying on cheap foreign labor. But many analysts are skeptical that […]

A cast of foreign actors is seeking to shape Sudan’s incomplete political transition after the fall of longtime President Omar al-Bashir, each nudging it in the direction they favor. Their competing agendas are complicating negotiations between the ruling Transitional Military Council and civilians in the pro-democracy movement represented by the Forces for Freedom and Change. The two sides reached a major agreement on July 5 to jointly manage a three-year transition to civilian rule, and there was a recent breakthrough on Aug. 4, as they finalized that July deal and thrashed out its details. Yet the transition remains fragile and […]