RIYADH, Aug 22: Saudi Arabia is restricting the number of workers an employer can import at one time in a bid to control the influx of expatriate labour.

The labour ministry, which is trying to reduce the country's heavy reliance on foreign manpower, has instructed offices in charge of bringing in workers that "only one application (representing) one enterprise (per employer) can be considered," at a time, said a statement carried on Sunday by the state news agency SPA.

The ministry said applications should be studied bearing in mind the necessity to avoid any "exaggeration" of the need for foreign workers. Employers cannot file another application until two months later to allow for the newly-arrived workers to be properly accounted for, it said.

Labour Minister Ghazi Al Qussaibi said in May that expatriates in the kingdom numbered 8.8 million, a figure equivalent to nearly 50 per cent of the indigenous population and which his ministry is determined to reduce to 20 per cent over the next eight years.

Saudi Arabia reportedly issued 600,000 working visas last year, and 120,000 during the first two months of 2004. Since the mid 1990s, the oil-rich kingdom has implemented a series of measures to boost employment opportunities for nationals, particularly in the private sector. -AFP