South Asian Migration in the Gulf

This volume explores the reasons behind, and impact of, the migration of South Asian nationals (from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bhutan and Maldives, Afghanistan and Myanmar) in the Gulf countries (Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE and Bahrain). The authors provide a broad overview of the demographics of the phenomenon, its mechanisms, and focus on the contribution of migrants in various sectors including construction, health and education, and the overall labour market in the Gulf. The book also taps into the regional geo-politics and its links to the South Asian Migration in the Gulf. This book is recommended reading to all those interested in international migration and labour issues.

Mehdi Chowdhury is Senior Lecturer in Economics at Bournemouth University, UK. He has a PhD in Economics from the University of Nottingham, UK. His research interests include international migration and human capital. He has published widely in international journals and also contributed a chapter on migration to the Palgrave Dictionary of Emerging Markets and Transition Economics.

S. Irudaya Rajan is Professor at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. He has 30 years of research experience, has coordinated six large-scale major migration surveys and has published extensively in national and international journals on social, economic and demographic implications of international migration. He has worked on projects with the European Union, International Labour Organization, World Bank, International Organization of Migration, South Asian Network of Economic Institutes (SANEI), Rockefeller Foundation, and United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organizations (UNESCO). Since 2010, he has been Editor of the annual series India Migration Report and since 2012, Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Migration and Development.