The influx of Nepalese workers to Qatar last year has taken the number of residents from that country to more than 300,000, making them the second largest resident community here. Ram Kadji Khadka, First Secretary at the Nepalese Embassy, said about 100,000 Nepalese, mostly low-skilled workers, came to Qatar last year. “The drastic growth is an indication that Qatar is the most preferred destination among our workers,” Khadka said in an interview with The Peninsula. He said the low-paid labourers, mostly employed in the construction industry, constitute about 90 percent of the Nepalese migrants working in Qatar. Many employers prefer Nepalese workers because they are the least paid, with an average wage of QR600 a month, which is the lowest among workers of all nationalities. Khadka, however, said semi-skilled Nepalese workers were now paid a little better, ranging from QR800 to QR1,000, adding that this was a welcome development for his countrymen. While Nepalese labourers dominate the workforce in Qatar, a growing number of Nepalese professionals are being employed by big companies here. Khadka said there were already about 200 Nepalese professionals, including engineers and accountants, holding good jobs here. Khadka said there were also some 25 Nepalese entrepreneurs providing manpower services in Qatar, catering to the needs of the workers trying their luck here. http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=January2009&file=Local_News2009010341417.xml It doesn't make sense. 320,000 Qataries... 400,000 Indian, 300,000 Nepalese, 120,000 South African, and total population is 1.5m according to my memory with other articles. So 1.2m are from those nationalities and the rest are other nationalities? I see Syrians, Lebanese and Palestians a lot too. I also see many French, German, and British people too! (I mean they are visible).

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