More companies in the Gulf are hiring and expanding their workforces, although many firms have yet to tap a growing pool of Emiratis who are entering the local labour market.
At present there are about 330,000 nationals within the UAE's job market, but that figure is projected to rise dramatically due, in part, to recent government initiatives in reforming the region's educational system with a focus on innovation and entrepreneurship.
By 2020, some 450,000 nationals are expected to be part of the labour force, and by 2050 that figure is projected to rise to 600,000, according to a recent report from the consultancy Towers Watson examining the talent supply of the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
Yet estimates for the unemployment level among Emiratis in the UAE have ranged from 13 per cent to almost 20 per cent, according to data from the National Human Resource Development & Employment Authority as well as the National Bureau of Statistics.
"If you have a growing population, and a growing labour force at a macro level, you need to employ these people," says Zaki Zahran, an economist with Towers Watson who worked on the UAE report. "What are you going to do about it?"
Female nationals tend to have a higher unemployment rate than their male counterparts.
Yet many of them are qualified for new positions, at least academically, given that there are far more female university graduates than male.
Long-term projections from Towers show the number of female workers will more than double over the next four decades.
At the same time, more Emirati men are expected to leave school early in pursuit of job opportunities that may not require as much advanced education.
Projections are one thing. But the effects of these changing dynamics are already being felt on the ground. Each year, between 2,000 and 3,000 women graduate from UAE University, compared with fewer than 500 men.
"This is what makes us wonder what happens to the women," says Dr Fatima Al Sayegh, an associate professor at UAE University's faculty of humanities and social sciences. "Where do they go? If they go to the workplace, will they get equal opportunities?"
Experts say organisations both in the private and public sector can attract - and retain - more Emiratis by offering career development opportunities and tailoring programmes towards individual aspirations.
"Companies that build that, and have flexibility to respond to different parts of the workforce in specific ways - and sustain that - are clearly going to experience lower levels of employees who voluntarily leave," says David Zinn, a senior consultant for Towers based in Dubai.
One issue, some say, is that too many organisations expect jobseekers to come in with advanced skills but are not willing to invest in the programmes needed to nurture employees.
"Some companies try to take the newcomers, train them and invest in them," says Dr Al Sayegh. But others, she warns, "want employees to come to them already with experience".
Some nationals are also pursuing higher-level education overseas, which has expanded the global talent pool of Emiratis. More than 7,000 Emiratis were enrolled in tertiary education programmes overseas last year, according to the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.
Certain companies in the UAE are now creating initiatives to help access any of those individuals who may be potential jobseekers.
Last month, the online career recruiter MonsterGulf.com launched a "Return2Home" programme targeting non-resident Emiratis who live elsewhere but may be looking to return.
The initiative was created to support the Government's goal to provide skilled positions for nationals and will help companies looking to hire locals from across the globe by targeting those jobseekers currently living in places such as the UK, North America, India and other countries throughout South East Asia.
"The initiative supports UAE Government's campaign of increasing the participation of Emiratis in the corporate world," says Sanjay Modi, the managing director for Monster.com in the Middle East, South East Asia and India.
"The biggest challenge faced by the industry is the current skill-gap scenario," Mr Modi adds.
"This initiative plugs that gap effectively. Investment by the Government in the technology space like IT, energy, infrastructure, is creating viable opportunities for Emirati diaspora to deploy their skills and expertise."
Globally, Monster.com is reaching out to Emiratis living abroad by running advertisements targeted specifically at them, as well as sending direct mail to those registered jobseekers who have indicated an interest in returning to the UAE. By the end of last year, MonsterGulf.com had registered about 22,700 non-resident nationals from the Gulf, including about 1,300 Emiratis.
Yet gauging interest from nationals living abroad will largely depend on which sectors have experienced greater levels of hiring than others. The recent boost in tourism to the UAE, driven in part by the unrest in nearby countries, has increased the demand for professional and managerial level employees in the retail and consumer electronics space more than any other.
Those sectors that align more closely with the Government's push for a highly skilled, knowledge-based economy include the software and hardware technology industries. Both areas have performed well.
Between 74 and 84 per cent of tech firms in the Middle East, depending on their speciality, say they are hiring employees for professional or managerial roles, according to a survey released last week by Antal, an international recruitment firm.
In the Emirates, specifically, 59 per cent of companies say they are currently hiring for more advanced positions, while 68 per cent say they plan to over the next three months.
"Now, everybody is looking at the future with optimism and [businesses] want to refill the roles which they had cut down during the last few quarters," says Nizar Lallani, the chief executive and country manager in the UAE for Antal.
nparmar@thenational.ae
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The specs: 2019 Subaru Forester
Price, base: Dh105,900 (Premium); Dh115,900 (Sport)
Engine: 2.5-litre four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 182hp @ 5,800rpm
Torque: 239Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 8.1L / 100km (estimated)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
European arms
Known EU weapons transfers to Ukraine since the war began: Germany 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger surface-to-air missiles. Luxembourg 100 NLAW anti-tank weapons, jeeps and 15 military tents as well as air transport capacity. Belgium 2,000 machine guns, 3,800 tons of fuel. Netherlands 200 Stinger missiles. Poland 100 mortars, 8 drones, Javelin anti-tank weapons, Grot assault rifles, munitions. Slovakia 12,000 pieces of artillery ammunition, 10 million litres of fuel, 2.4 million litres of aviation fuel and 2 Bozena de-mining systems. Estonia Javelin anti-tank weapons. Latvia Stinger surface to air missiles. Czech Republic machine guns, assault rifles, other light weapons and ammunition worth $8.57 million.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EGrowdash%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJuly%202022%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESean%20Trevaskis%20and%20Enver%20Sorkun%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ERestaurant%20technology%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%20so%20far%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24750%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFlat6Labs%2C%20Plus%20VC%2C%20Judah%20VC%2C%20TPN%20Investments%20and%20angel%20investors%2C%20including%20former%20Talabat%20chief%20executive%20Abdulhamid%20Alomar%2C%20and%20entrepreneur%20Zeid%20Husban%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
A cheaper choice
Vanuatu: $130,000
Why on earth pick Vanuatu? Easy. The South Pacific country has no income tax, wealth tax, capital gains or inheritance tax. And in 2015, when it was hit by Cyclone Pam, it signed an agreement with the EU that gave it some serious passport power.
Cost: A minimum investment of $130,000 for a family of up to four, plus $25,000 in fees.
Criteria: Applicants must have a minimum net worth of $250,000. The process take six to eight weeks, after which the investor must travel to Vanuatu or Hong Kong to take the oath of allegiance. Citizenship and passport are normally provided on the same day.
Benefits: No tax, no restrictions on dual citizenship, no requirement to visit or reside to retain a passport. Visa-free access to 129 countries.
more from Janine di Giovanni
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey'
Rating: 3/5
Directors: Ramin Bahrani, Debbie Allen, Hanelle Culpepper, Guillermo Navarro
Writers: Walter Mosley
Stars: Samuel L Jackson, Dominique Fishback, Walton Goggins
In The Heights
Directed by: Jon M. Chu
Stars: Anthony Ramos, Lin-Manual Miranda
Rating: ****
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
Schedule:
Pakistan v Sri Lanka:
28 Sep-2 Oct, 1st Test, Abu Dhabi
6-10 Oct, 2nd Test (day-night), Dubai
13 Oct, 1st ODI, Dubai
16 Oct, 2nd ODI, Abu Dhabi
18 Oct, 3rd ODI, Abu Dhabi
20 Oct, 4th ODI, Sharjah
23 Oct, 5th ODI, Sharjah
26 Oct, 1st T20I, Abu Dhabi
27 Oct, 2nd T20I, Abu Dhabi
29 Oct, 3rd T20I, Lahore
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Company%20profile
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