Doha - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the relative size of the expatriate community? How would you describe overall morale among expatriates?
I feel the overall morale here in Qatar is good. Doha offers a lot of Americana and so I almost feel like home when I am away. I find many expats look forward to vacations to get away to other places that they can be outside and enjoying nature. It costs a lot to live here but you also make more and you can fly to just about anywhere. There are lots of oil people here in Doha so the expat community is diverse. Business and banking are also popular, as well as several prominent American Universities, which bring along expats in the process. Good to remember though is that Qatar does not have a bilateral work agreement. - Oct 2023
Very large. There is a large number of expats in the oil and gas industry. There are also expats from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, etc in the service industries. Now, the Embassy is in a converted palace. It's a small, old building that is bursting at the seams. More and more agencies are coming in, but there is no room. A NEC is supposed to be built but that will be in 10-15 years probably. - Jul 2022
Huge! I've actually see very few Qataris. Morale depends, I've heard some people love it and some people are really miserable. - Apr 2021
90% of the population are expats, and for a country of 2.67 million people, that's a lot of expats.
I can say that for the diplomatic bubble, the morale typically ranges from mediocre to poor. A lot of this hinges on the work environment, which has certainly improved in our time here. But even now, the general morale of the community is fair at best. - May 2017
Huge. Expats make up 90% of the population here, though most of those are the South Asian labor force. The Western expat scene is still huge, and if you pop in to any weekend brunch at one of the upscale hotels (an expat favorite pastime here), you will see nothing but Westerners.
Morale can vary greatly. The lack of things to do and the sometimes-stifling nature of Qatar can grind on people. - May 2017
huge. Out of 2 million people in country, locals are only 250k. Most expats are ready to leave after two years. - May 2015
Expats make up about 88% of the country. Morale is pretty low in general, for various reasons depending on the group. Largely because it's very expensive, hard to get around, and the weather sucks most of the year. Also because expats are mostly treated like garbage by Qataris. There seems to be a standard maximum tolerance level for living in Qatar, and most people reach it at about the six year mark. - Feb 2015
Very large... expats from everywhere! - Apr 2012
Many Indians, although they are leaving in droves. Many Nepalese, filling in the voids left by the Indians. Caucasians are there too, and many are at the base here. - Mar 2012
Large. Expats outnumber locals 4 to 1. - Mar 2012
GINORMOUS. But, these are expats from all over the world. In our compound of 40 villas we have French, Spanish, Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, British, Egyptian, and US -- and surely more that I'm not aware of. You won't necessarily make friends with the local Qataris, but you will make many international friends. - Jan 2012
LARGE. Lots of oil people. - Oct 2010
GIANT.There are over 20,000 Americans living in this small country. I feel like we've moved halfway around the world to live with Americans. - Dec 2009
Huge ! There are 1.5 million people here and 80% of them are third country nationals. The expats run everything. If we all left tomorrow the place would unravel. - Sep 2008
