Saudi Arabia’s population drops to 34.1 million from 35 million

Cairo: Saudi Arabia’s overall population dropped by 2.6 per cent in mid-2021 to stand at 34.1 million against 35 million the same period in the previous year, the kingdom’s state statistics agency has said.

The General Authority for Statistics said the main reason for the demographic decline is a decrease of around 8.6 per cent in non-Saudi population as many expatriates left the kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Saudi news portal Sabq.

As a result, foreigners made up around 36.4 per cent of Saudi Arabia’s overall population in mid-2021 against 38.8 per cent in mid-2020.

The number of Saudi population, meanwhile, rose by 1.2 per cent in mid-2021. Males accounted for 56.8 per cent ,or 19.4 million of the kingdom’s total population, according to the latest figures.

Saudi Arabia still has a large community of expatriate workers.