Quality of Life and Satisfaction with Public Services in Qatar: Qataris versus Expatriates’ Perspectives

Abstract

How to explain a negative relation between satisfaction with life and satisfaction about public service delivery? In Qatar, non-citizens are much more positive about public service delivery than citizens, but citizens are more satisfied about life in general than non-citizens. This article assesses the level of satisfaction with public services and life satisfaction in Qatar for citizens and non-citizens and empirically investigates the associated factors.

Dissatisfaction with basic public services, such as health, education, transport, electricity and other types of government services, grew in many MENA countries in the years prior to the Arab Spring. In these countries, life satisfaction was very low, and people in Egypt, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Tunisia and Yemen were among the least happy people in the world.

Living in Qatar, a country with one of the world’s highest per capita incomes, does not secure life satisfaction, as the relation between income and life satisfaction is more complex than it seems. Qatar has a high rate of population growth and a high migrant population.