In a recent HSBC survey of how well expats mix with locals, Qatar ranked last out of 26 countries.
It only confirms what many expats know to be truth. While Qataris are often very friendly, we tend to move in different circles, have very different lifestyles - and have a vast cultural chasm that can be hard to bridge.
Yousra has also argued that Qatar men are very shy, putting up another barrier to integration.
In addition, the majority of people come to Qatar to make money rather than to experience the culture.
Perhaps more worrying, Qatar ranked last out of all the countries measured in terms of overall satisfaction, and only scored reasonably in two areas - managing finances (8) and healthcare (13).
The Middle East location is no excuse. Despite lower salaries in the country, expats ranked nearby Bahrain a very impressive 5 - which put it ahead of France and the US.
If you are British, don't gloat. Our performance was also far from impressive - a miserly 23!
Download the full report here.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
HSBC: Qatar Worst Place for Making Friends With Locals
Posted by James Dunworth at 9:46 AM