Gulf Nations Can Provide Jobs, Which Is Crucial to Syrian Refugees

Ibrahim Fraihat, a senior foreign policy fellow at Brookings Doha Center, is the author of the forthcoming "Unfinished Revolutions: Yemen, Libya and Tunisia After the Arab Spring." He is on Twitter.

Updated September 15, 2015, 3:30 AM

The gulf states generally outline a number of concerns that limit their ability to absorb a large number of Syrian refugees: Expatriates already outnumber locals in many countries, some refugees’ political loyalties pose a security threat, and gulf states have already provided generous financial aid to help with the crisis. While these concerns are valid to a certain extent, they should not prevent gulf states from taking in Syrian refugees. The gulf can do a lot more to alleviate this humanitarian crisis.

Failing to adequately aid the refugees will exacerbate the region’s security issues, as some of those displaced will surely turn to extremism.

Expats outnumbering locals has not prevented gulf states from continuing to bring in more migrant workers. Most gulf states are small and wealthy with rapidly growing local markets, an equation that necessitates importing foreign professionals. The Syrian refugees are generally skilled and can certainly contribute to responding to the gulf states’ market needs.

In fact, there are already hundreds of thousands of Syrians in the gulf states, many of whom were there prior to the Arab uprisings of 2011. It is very likely that some of them have controversial political allegiances. However, there have not been noticeable cases where the security of gulf states has been threatened because of the Syrians living there.

Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates have made large contributions to the United Nations, host governments and N.G.O.s. But the scale of the crisis is overwhelming -- and not just in terms of dollars. The refugees need solutions that come with dignity. They want to earn their living, not survive on handouts. They have suffered immensely, including dispossession. What they need now is to be able to look after their children and relatives who stayed behind. The gulf markets are well positioned to provide dignified work and incomes. Failing to adequately aid the refugees will exacerbate the region’s security issues, as some of those displaced will surely turn to extremism.