Abu Dhabi, UAE. 31st May 2010: Strong collaboration and the establishment of a link between local universities and private companies are needed in order to address certain issues that hinder UAE nationals from working in the private sector.

These recommendations were reached following the presentations made by Fadi Bin Haider Al Attas, Recruitment Manager and Chris Jolliffe, Assessment Manager of Summit Career Management Services, a private Careers Guidance and Placement Service provider, at a practical workshop conducted in conjunction with the Emiratisation Forum held at the Fairmont’s Bab Al Bahar hotel in Abu Dhabi.

Organised by Abu Dhabi University (ADU) and hosted by Aim Events - the conference and events division of ADU - the workshop entitled ‘Discovering Emirati Talent’ has identified a lack of awareness on different opportunities within the private sector as well as stereotyping of UAE nationals by private companies as issues that hamper Emiratisation.

“Emirati job seekers have no idea about the vast careers that await them in private organisations,” said Al Attas. “In the same way, employers should stop stereotyping and change their mindset about UAE nationals.

“We need to educate employers and keep them informed about what Emiratis can contribute in these companies,” he added.

Delegates at the workshop came up with different approaches to tackle the issues raised, and amongst them were determining what career Emirati students want to pursue in the future, customising school curriculums to include programmes from private companies, and promoting career guidance within the high school level.

Workshop participants also highlighted the need for the private sector to start believing in the capabilities of Emiratis. They mentioned that employers should not make processes difficult when hiring Emiratis, and should actually be allowed to develop themselves within the workplace.

Meanwhile, Dr. Bob Nelson, master motivator and bestselling author, tackled ‘Building a Team Culture’ in a separate workshop. In this workshop, Dr. Nelson focused on recognition as a great tool to retain Emiratis in a workplace as he highlighted the importance of creating a field of engagement and tapping into people’s interests and desires to form a solid foundation within the company.

“We need to find out strengths rather than weaknesses and build on these. We can’t force performance but we can get behind them, encourage them and sustain their talent. We have to make recognition a part of the work culture,” said Dr Nelson.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) is the forum’s Diamond Sponsor for the event and the Injazat Institute and Eithad Airways are the Gold sponsors. More information about the forum can be found on the event’s website, www.emiratisation-forum.com/.

Private shareholding companies increase strength and add AED1.338 billion to total capital in 2009

Dubai, April 8, 2010: The number of private shareholding companies in the UAE reached 134 as of December 31, 2009, according to statistics issued by the Ministry of Economy.

A total of 15 private shareholding companies were newly registered in the country last year, indicating robust economic activity and continuing confidence in the local business environment. Nine of these new entities are investment companies while two each are from real estate and finance and the remaining one from the services sector.

Together the new companies registered in 2009 accounted for a capital of AED1.338 billion taking the total paid-up capital of private shareholding companies in the country to AED117.14 billion and total capital to AED122.39 billion.

A major contributor to the national economy, private shareholding companies operate in almost all critical sectors in the UAE including finance, investment, services, industry, real estate, and utilities.

Abu Dhabi had 72 private shareholding companies as 2009 came to a close, while Dubai had 47 and the emirates of Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman and Fujairah together had 15.

His Excellency Mohammed Ahmed Bin Abdul Aziz Al Shihhi, Director General of the Ministry of Economy, said: “The very fact that the UAE private sector continued on the growth track even during such difficult times proves the strength of our economic fundamentals. In spite of the global economic downturn the UAE remains focused on offering effective legislation to protect investors and ensuring a robust economic environment for investments.

“The Ministry of Economy is committed to strengthen this focus and enhance growth by facilitating economic activity and reinforcing investor confidence, thus fulfilling our commitment to the economic development goals set forth in the UAE Vision 2021,“ Al Shihhi added.

Lack of interest from private sector companies is blocking nationalization, says Edexcel

Dubai, UAE, 22nd February, 2010: GCC governments are playing their role in integrating nationals into the private sector, but more needs to be done by companies to lure nationals into the private sector, according to Edexcel, a leading provider of internationally recognized academic and professional qualifications.

This is one of the topics that were addressed at the “Nationalisation 2010 Conference” currently being held in Al Murooj Rotana Hotel in Dubai.

It is estimated that UAE nationals make up just four per cent of the private sector workforce, compared to 52 per cent in public sector.

Mark Andrews, MENA Regional Director, Edexcel, the associate sponsor of the Conference, said imposing nationalisation quotas on private companies would be counter productive. “The key is to provide the right education to these nationals to nurture their skills, and make efforts to strike a balance between Emiratis’ salary expectations and private companies’ priority on optimum productivity.”

Other critical issues include bridging the gap between the knowledge obtained through formal education and skills required by employers, according to Andrews.

Developing nationals to leadership positions in the private sector would be the ideal way to integrate more nationals into the private sector at all levels. Local employees have traditionally given preference to the public sector. They also display strong preferences for particular jobs and avoid certain others, thus creating an imbalance in their availability for certain job segments. Further, talented nationals are in high demand and difficult to retain, creating a retention challenge.

“It is a two-way street. Nationals have to show more zeal to be integrated into the private sector and companies should work harder on integrating them into their multinational workforce,” said Andrews.

Andrews added: “Developing nationals for leadership positions will have a domino effect on the move to have more nationals into lower management positions. The main aim of Nationalisation is to develop GCC leaders of tomorrow. Education plays a key role in developing the leadership skills of raw talent in the Gulf.”

Currently, private companies in certain sectors in the Gulf are required by the governments to employ a certain number of GCC nationals. 

“The GCC education system should work on introducing students to the real-world workplace. It is important to ensure that university and college graduates meet the needs of the labour market if the campaign to have more nationals in the private sector is to succeed,” added Andrews.

Middle East education has to prepare future generations to help economies to compete in the global skills race and there is a disconnect between educators and employers. As a result, there is an absence of the development of workforce behaviors within education, such as leadership, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Edexcel’s vocational qualifications provide a practical, real-world approach to learning alongside a theoretical background. They are designed both to replicate the professional working environment and provide learners with the skills, knowledge and behaviors they need to succeed in an increasingly competitive global market.

Edexcel, the leading UK based awarding body, is part of Pearson, one of the world’s largest education services providers. It offers academic and professional qualifications and testing to thousands of schools, colleges, employers and other places of learning globally, and has over 4 million learners enrolled on its highly regarded courses in more than 85 countries.

In the UAE, Edexcel works with many private institutions as well as government-funded training providers responsible for educating the local population, which include the National Institute for Vocational Education, the Institute for Vocational Development and the Sharjah Institute of Technology.

Emiratisation Employer Forum to promote Emirati workforce in private sector

HE Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan leads high-level government officials and UAE businesses on 25th January

Abu Dhabi, 23^rd January 2010 – The Emiratisation Employer Forum, aimed at promoting sustainable employment of Emiratis in the private sector, will commence on 25^th January at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahar, Abu Dhabi, under the patronage and in the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, UAE Minister of Higher Education & Scientific Research.

Presented by the Abu Dhabi Tawteen Council (ADTC) and organised by the Abu Dhabi University, the forum is entitled, “Private Sector Emiratisation for Economic Prosperity”. It seeks to encourage employers from the private sector to share their Emiratisation experiences and help shape public policy on Emiratisation issues that will strengthen Emirati employment in the country

The forum is free to qualified individuals, engaged in Emiratisation in their private sector businesses. It also hopes to provide a platform for private employers and government representatives to discuss successful implementation of Emiratisation policies and meet the human resource requirements of the private sector.

Distinguished speakers at the forum include government officials, namely H.E. Dr, Mugheer Al Khaili, Director General of the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC); H.E. Abdullah Saeed Al Darmaki, General Manager of ADTC; H.E. Mohammed Omar Abdullah, Undersecretary, Department of Economic Development (DED); Mr. Muneeb Kazim, Executive Director Strategy, Planning and Policy at ADTC, and Dr Salwa Al Nuaimi, Vice President, Talent Acquisition, Human Resources from Etihad Airways.

Abu Dhabi Conference 2009 to provide strategic business insight in line with Abu Dhabi’s long-term socioeconomic strategy Read the full story