Unique Patterns of Population Growth in Qatar: Changes and Prospects of Immigration-based Policies in the Light of Social Divide

Vara, Bálint (2026) Unique Patterns of Population Growth in Qatar: Changes and Prospects of Immigration-based Policies in the Light of Social Divide. MODERN GEOGRÁFIA, 21 (2). pp. 49-71. ISSN 2062-1655

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Abstract

This study examines the transformation of Qatar’s total population over the past century and accounts for the external and internal factors influencing it (e.g., the distribution of birth numbers). The relevance of the topic lies in the unique patterns of extreme immigration processes in the country, which can be instructive for understanding what strategies a small, narrowly defined social group (in this case, Qatari citizens) may adopt to maintain effective power despite being the demographic minority. The unbalanced situation that emerged by the 2020s is a direct long-term consequence of local political decisions. The research was carried out by aggregating and visualizing data from the Qatar Statistics Bureau (QSB) and the World Bank. The study aims to identify the risks and the most important societal shaping factors that have influenced rapid population growth, its potential consequences, and the processes that may affect the leadership’s policy choices in the future. The results partially confirm my hypothesis that the population strategy is unsustainable in the long term within the current framework due to economic and legal reasons. In Qatar, the majority of newborns are not local citizens, and the number of people born and raised in the country will increase in the coming generations, which could place additional pressure on the government.

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