A UAE initiative will assess coders to ensure their computer programming skills match the demands of the market.
The Coders HQ, which was launched in January, will now test the best programmers to ensure their skills are suitable for global companies such as Emirates airline, LinkedIn and Majid Al Futtaim.
It will also help coders to expand their career prospects in programming, which has become one of the fastest-growing private sector industries.
“Each one of us is capable of learning the language [coding] and to develop a system,” said Omar Al Olama, Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications at an event held at the Museum of the Future on Tuesday.
Each one of us is capable of learning the language [coding] and developing a system
Omar Sultan Al Olama
“But what is missing today is not knowing our level as we compare ourselves to the people around us, not knowing what our needs are when we move from one phase to another and not knowing what the relevant stages are to be among the highest level of programmers.
“Many people speak about their potential in coding but sometimes this is opposite to reality.”
Anyone wishing to be evaluated will be tested, with their skills graded for suitability for programming jobs in the private sector.
Training will be offered to ensure coding skills evolve with changes in technology.
Mr Al Olama said the UAE should become a regional centre for coding, with wider use of the Arabic language in technology, and hoped every public and private sector entity would have a ‘coding ambassador’ to encourage others to learn new skills.
A new partnership with Cisco will put Arabic at the centre of technology developed and launched in the region, he said.
“Evaluation will come first, followed by education. Later, we will give people a chance to implement their skills,” said Mr Al Olama.
“Our belief is that UAE must be the incubator of the future of the technology.
“We should not forget that the UAE, being an Arab country, a country in the Middle East and a major motivator for this technology, made us collaborate with Cisco for this initiative.”
The UAE Artificial Intelligence Office recently launched an AI and coding licence to attract technology companies and coders from around the world.
Coding school 42 Abu Dhabi - in pictures
In partnership with the Dubai International Financial Centre’s Innovation Hub, the project aims to increase the number of tech companies operating in the emirate.
Currently, more than 500 start-ups and tech groups are based at the DIFC hub.
At the launch of Coders HQ, Microsoft said it would host an OpenHack event to encourage people to work with the company on digital solutions and innovation.
OpenHack is a developer-focused event to teach talented coders to learn in challenge-based, real-world scenarios designed to mimic a developer’s journey inside Microsoft.
Participants work together in teams of five to complete challenges that increase in complexity as they progress.
“We strive for meaningful innovation at Microsoft, with products and services that improve lives and have the potential to change the world,” said Tamer Salah, AI country strategy lead for Microsoft.
“For decades, our researchers and engineers have pushed the boundaries of science and technology to inspire others to imagine, and help build a better future.
“With the support of the Ministry of AI, we are bringing back the OpenHack event to the UAE.
“It is a unique way to co-invent with Microsoft and empower local talents within the country to engage with our own experts and developers, to find real-world solutions that challenge through unique, immersive experiences.”
Currently, there are about 63,000 coders in the country, working in computer programming or preparing for a career in industries like FinTech or software development.
In January, the National Programme for Artificial Intelligence announced a series of measures to increase the number of qualified coders in the UAE to reach 100,000 by the end of 2022.
Coding initiatives to boost digital economy
Here are the initiatives that were announced at the event held on Monday:
Setting up an evaluation centre
The centre will classify the skill set of programmers and help them find jobs that best suit their expertise.
Coder HQ Ambassadors
The chosen 'ambassadors' will teach others how to programme, especially among university students. They will be based at Emirates Towers, to propose and implement projects. Candidates can apply at www.ai.gov.ae/chqambsd
Natural Language Processing Challenge
This initiative seeks to form specialised teams of Emiratis who are good at language processing. These teams will be responsible for educating university students who are ready for the job market and will help to create a future talent pool of programmers.
Tanzu Community
The Tanzu Community, launched in collaboration with VMWare, a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps, provides programmers with an opportunity to learn more about software technology. The community will hold monthly meetings with those interested with the objective of nurturing future talent.
“Open Hack” Hackathon
The joint project between Microsoft and Coders HQ aims to develop programming teams to work in the private sector, increasing competitiveness which will have a positive effect on the digital economy.
LinkedIn Statistics
This is designed to provide accurate statistics that reflect the current state of programmers in the UAE. With more than 63,000 programmers working across all sectors in the UAE, access to this objective data will improve the decision-making process.
Korean Film Festival 2019 line-up
Innocent Witness, June 26 at 7pm
On Your Wedding Day, June 27 at 7pm
The Great Battle, June 27 at 9pm
The Witch: Part 1. The Subversion, June 28 at 4pm
Romang, June 28 at 6pm
Mal Mo E: The Secret Mission, June 28 at 8pm
Underdog, June 29 at 2pm
Nearby Sky, June 29 at 4pm
A Resistance, June 29 at 6pm
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Thor: Ragnarok
Dir: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson
Four stars
Your rights as an employee
The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.
The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.
If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.
Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.
The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.
List of officials:
Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.
Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.
Five films to watch
Castle in the Sky (1986)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Only Yesterday (1991)
Pom Poki (1994)
The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013)
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Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
The Scale for Clinical Actionability of Molecular Targets
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Play-off fixtures
Two-legged ties to be played November 9-11 and November 12-14
- Northern Ireland v Switzerland
- Croatia v Greece
- Denmark v Ireland
- Sweden v Italy
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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What is a calorie?
A food calorie, or kilocalorie, is a measure of nutritional energy generated from what is consumed.
One calorie, is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water by 1°C.
A kilocalorie represents a 1,000 true calories of energy.
Energy density figures are often quoted as calories per serving, with one gram of fat in food containing nine calories, and a gram of protein or carbohydrate providing about four.
Alcohol contains about seven calories a gram.
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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