There has been positive news about the UAE economy and a rise in employment so far this year, but certain sectors have been hiring more aggressively than others.
Emirates airline said in January that it plans to hire 5,000 cabin crew this year. At the end of April, the airline said it would continue to ramp up the hiring of pilots and increase their salaries.
With 65 new aircraft on order (delivery expected from the middle of next year), it’s a great sign from one of the UAE’s leading employers.
Hotel occupancy also shows no sign of slowing down, with many more properties opening across the Emirates and plenty of demand to fill inventory.
The travel and tourism industries are clearly benefiting from market conditions, so what does this mean for other sectors?
As a recruiter in the technology sector, I am witnessing a higher demand for talent in comparison to the same time last year, and a larger volume of new jobs coming in now than at the beginning of this year.
It has not been a slow start to the year, but many recruitment processes can take a while, especially when there are visa applications, security clearances and relocations involved.
In real terms, we are seeing new candidates placed in jobs now after hiring managers requested for candidates in December and January.
The good news is that with higher demand now than three months ago, we will continue to see more new jobs created well into the third quarter.
With Ramadan and Eid behind us, there is every reason to believe that the rest of this year will continue to be a busy one.
The biggest demand from our UAE clients is for tech professionals with niche skill sets in cyber and telecoms.
There is also a surge in demand from technology vendors looking to grow their sales teams.
Outside the UAE, we are also seeing demand in Saudi Arabia grow across all sectors.
The Emirates has ambitious growth targets and is seeking to double its gross domestic product to $800 billion by 2030, from $442.1 billion in 2022.
There is a long way to reach this number, but there seem to be no signs of a slowdown.
The government has also diversified its revenue sources, with oil accounting for less than 30 per cent of revenue in 2022.
Outside the tourism industry, there is huge investment in transportation, real estate, public safety and renewable energy, among others. As these sectors grow, so will the number of available job opportunities.
So, are we seeing a recruitment boom? I would say no, but we are seeing much more measured, sustainable growth based on a strong economy and healthy market conditions.
Periods of boom and bust are never good for the long term; being able to plan and forecast any business with steady growth is a far better strategy.
I have said earlier that companies over-hired post-Covid and this led to a downturn six to 12 months later. Fortunately, it seems like business leaders are reluctant to commit the same mistakes.
Of course, there may be more periods of decline in the future, but I doubt these will be as dramatic as seen in previous times.
We learn from lessons of the past, and as an emerging market like the UAE continues to grow into a more mature one, the outlook will continue to be better.
This region continues to be a very attractive proposition to both businesses and families from abroad seeking a better life owing to a great climate, quality of life, no taxes and family safety. These conditions are not likely to change any time soon.
John Armstrong is the founder and managing director of JCA Associates
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Leaderboard
63 - Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA)
64 - Rory McIlroy (NIR)
66 - Jon Rahm (ESP)
67 - Tom Lewis (ENG), Tommy Fleetwood (ENG)
68 - Rafael Cabrera-Bello (ESP), Marcus Kinhult (SWE)
69 - Justin Rose (ENG), Thomas Detry (BEL), Francesco Molinari (ITA), Danny Willett (ENG), Li Haotong (CHN), Matthias Schwab (AUT)
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Coming 2 America
Directed by: Craig Brewer
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones
3/5 stars
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
The%20trailblazers
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The%20Secret%20Kingdom%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Matt%20Drummond%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlyla%20Browne%2C%20Alice%20Parkinson%2C%20Sam%20Everingham%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
West Asia Premiership
Dubai Hurricanes 58-10 Dubai Knights Eagles
Dubai Tigers 5-39 Bahrain
Jebel Ali Dragons 16-56 Abu Dhabi Harlequins
FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
