The number of Emiratis working in the private sector exceeds 100,000 for the first time

The number of Emiratis working in the private sector has exceeded 100,000 for the first time, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid announced on Sunday.

Dubai’s prime minister and ruler said in a message on X, formerly Twitter, that more than 70,000 citizens have joined private companies in the past two and a half years.

Sheikh Mohammed, also vice president, unveiled plans to accelerate the country’s Emiratization drive by giving priority to positions in government departments to people who have worked in the private sector for at least three years.

The strategy – first announced at a meeting of the UAE cabinet earlier this month – will support efforts to create an additional 100,000 jobs for citizens over the next three years, he said.

“I have reviewed the results of the Emiratization strategy in the private sector in the UAE. For the first time in the country’s history, the number of Emiratis working in the private sector has exceeded 100,000,” Sheikh Mohammed wrote in X.

He added: “70,000 of them have joined in the last two and a half years after the launch of the Nafis program by my brother, the President of the UAE, with generous support of Dh24 billion and the introduction of many supportive and encouraging regulations for Emiratization in the private sector, along with the rapid economic growth in our country.

“We have approved a new policy in the government that gives preference to people with three years of experience in the private sector for employment in the government sector.

“We acknowledge and thank the team at Nafis and the Ministry of Emiratization and Human Resources, overseen by my brother Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, for their work on this important national issue.

“Our goal is to create 100,000 new jobs for citizens in the next three years.”

Emiratization is gaining momentum

The UAE has made a major effort to encourage more local talent to work in the private sector, which remains the driving force behind the country’s economic development.

The UAE’s Nafis program was launched in September 2021, with a mission to ensure that 10% of all private sector jobs are achieved by the end of 2026.

Under the nationwide initiative, companies must increase their workforce in the UAE by 1 percent every six months.

Employers in the UAE with at least 50 employees were required to achieve the 4% target by the end of 2023.

The employment rate in the Emirates will increase to 6%. by the end of 2024, 8 percent in 2025 and 10 percent in 2026

Last year, the government ordered companies employing 20 to 49 people to employ at least one employee from the United Arab Emirates by the end of 2024 and two by the end of 2025, a further development of the emirsatization campaign.

Updated: May 26, 2024, 9:25 am