Empowering Emiratis: A Guide to the Emiratisation Program

Today in this article, we discuss what emiratisation program in UAE is, what are the benefits of emiratisation for businesses and for UAE nationals. Also, we will provide deep insights on the challenges and opportunities of establishing Emiritisation in a country

What is the Emiratisation Program?

For years, the UAE has been dependent heavily on foreign workers in the private sector. As per the stats, only 4% of emiratis are employed in the private sector out of 92% of the workforce. It increases the urge to do some efforts to enhance the number.

The economy of UAE is constantly growing and relying only on national employment is not sustainable. So there was high time for the UAE government to take some initiative for Emiratis

In 2022, the UAE government has finally taken some serious initiative. According to the UAE Emiratisation Program, the private sector must have to proactively contribute. They do so by creating additional opportunities for Emiratis in the workplace. With this step, the UAE makes a strategic investment in future skills to prepare young Emiratis for the future job market.

Evolution of Emiratisation Program in Recent Years

Emiratisation Rates	Years	Months
2%	2022	December
3%	2023	June
4%	2023	December
5%	2024	June
6%	2024	December
7%	2025	June
8%	2025	December
9%	2026	June
10%	2026	December

 

Benefits of the Emiratisation Program for Businesses

The aim of Emiratisation is to increase the participation of UAE nationals in the private sectors. Beside the benefits that Emiratisation offers to the UAE citizens. It also enables businesses to get the desired fruit of the initiative.

Some of the many benefits that Emiratisation has done are discussed below:

• By introducing Emiratisation UAE, companies can have access to more local talent. So they don’t need to rely on foreigners to fill the role
• Emitisation encourages private sector companies to participate in initiatives through incentives, subsidies, and recognition programs.
• By fostering an environment of hiring Emiratis, it supports private sector employers in recruiting, training, and retaining Emirati talent, including assistance with job matching and workforce development.

Benefits of the Emiratisation Program for Emirati Citizens

Human Capital Development

Emiratisation rule also offers training and skill development programs for Emiratis. It ensures that Emiratis are equipped with the necessary skills for the job market to fill the gap. This also boosts Emiratis as competent professionals who can be recognized globally.

Empower Future Generations

The training and development programs and hiring quotas are specifically for Emiratis. It creates multiple avenues of professional growth and skill development for the younger generation. By empowering future generations, Emirati will emerge as more robust individuals to the nation’s overall development.

Political Security

A well-employed citizen is said to be more politically stable. Due to the launch of Emiratisation, it can contribute to political stability. It ensures the local population feels looked after and valued. Additionally, emiratis employed in the private sector will solve ethnic monopolies in the private sector issue too.

Self Reliance

By establishing emiratisation, it helps build Emiratis as more vital professionals. It encourages them to believe in their talent, skill, and knowledge. Now, the Emirati population think that they are talented enough and can rely on their expertise for any role

Cultural Values:

Emiratisation has helped in preserving UAE cultural values. As per Emiratisation, Emiratis are given preference to more employment opportunities so they actively Participate in the private sector. This maximizes the acceptance of the local culture, food, costume, etc.

Language:

Around the globe, English is the widely spoken language and so is the UAE. The expatriate rich population has made English the main language in the UAE. There are foreigners who speak Hindi, Urdu, and Filipino depending on the home country they belong to. But with Emiratisation, the Arabic language was reintroduced in the private sector. It eliminates the dominance of other foreign languages. By prevailing in the Arabic language, the UAE government preserved the language as a vital component of the country’s culture.

What is the purpose of Emiratisation?

The purpose of Emiratisation is to enable the UAE nationals to get benefit of the opportunities in the private sector so that they can’t feel the disgrace, disrespect, and foreign dominance in the country. As the growing number of foreigners have impacted Emiratis in each sector. So the UAE government takes the initiative to empower UAE nationals under the Emiratisation program.

What is the 2% Emiratisation rule?

The 2% emiratisation rule of Emiratisation laws states that, the companies with 50+ employees must have to hire 2% Emiratis for skilled positions. It means one Emirati employee for every 50 skilled workers is essential in every private sector company.

What is the minimum salary in Emiratisation?

According to the new Emiratisation policy 2024, the UAE private companies are required to pay AED 5000 minimum salary to the employees. Regardless of their company size, nature or activity of business. Few are exempted by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE).

What is the penalty for Emiratisation in UAE?

The UAE private sector companies having 20 to 49 workers are required to hire at least two Emirati citizens. Failure to follow the law, will result a fine of AED 108,000

Recruitment and Employment Strategies

By introducing Emiratisation, it fosters employment opportunities for UAE nationals. The UAE citizen can avail of the training and development programs and employment program to help Emiratis attain the necessary skills needed for the job requirement. It also allows job seekers to target the right candidate through targeted outreach programs.

Under Emiratisation, the UAE citizen will enjoy quotas and incentives in the public sector to prioritize the hiring of Emirati nationals. Also, it encourages private sector companies to participate in Emiratisation initiatives through incentives, subsidies, and recognition programs.

Additionally, Emiratisation provide support to private sector employers in recruiting, training, and retaining Emirati talent that benefits the organization

The Future of Emiratisation

Emiratisation is the UAE government’s initiative to increase the participation of Emirati nationals in the workforce. It is expected to evolve in the future in response to changing economic, social, and technological trends.

Emiratisation initiatives aim to create a sustainable future by empowering Emiratis in:

• Global trends
• Economic Diversification
• Skills Development
• Private Sector Engagement
• Technology advancement
• Culture of innovation

By doing so, Emirati talent can significantly contribute to the country’s prosperity and development. Overall, the future of Emiratisation will be summarized by efforts to empower Emirati nationals to enhance their employability. It also enables them to integrate into the rapidly evolving UAE economy.

Challenges and Opportunities

There are several challenges and opportunities in establishing Emiratisation in the country. The challenges the private sector may face are:

Challenges

• To hire Emirati nationals is a biggest challenge for private companies. As the Emiratis may lack skill and experience that lead to hesitancy to hire them for a job
• There may be a mismatch between the qualification of Emirati and the job requirement that leads to dissatisfaction. This gap can be bridged by offering them training and development programs
• Emiratis believe that some jobs are prestigious and valuable while some are not. This will make them unwilling to apply for certain jobs in the private sector

Opportunities

• By introducing emiratisation in the UAE, the citizens are equipped with education, training and development programs. It offer them to fill the gap in the job market
• Emiratisation also offers diversification in the economy. By increasing participation of UAE citizens in all sectors such as technology, tourism, and healthcare
• Encouraging entrepreneurship among Emirati nationals presents opportunities for creating new businesses, driving economic growth, and generating employment opportunities

Conclusion

In conclusion, the UAE government has introduced an emiratisation program to give UAE nationals their forgotten right. So that they feel respected again. Emiratisation is a skill enhancement program that not only preserve UAE cultural norms and values but also introduce their national language Arabic as the mandatory language. However, it also increases the participation of UAE citizens in the private sector that enables them to be sustainable and competitive against global talent.

FAQs:

 

What is the aim of Emiratisation?

Emiratisation aims to empower Emiratis by enabling them to showcase their talent and skills in private sector due to the unsustainability of the government employment

What are the benefits of Emiratisation to UAE citizens?

Emiratisation benefits citizens in many ways, it fosters a culture where Emiratis can work efficiently. Their culture and language is preserved and now they feel more valuable. Also the launching of training and development programs make them work on their skills gap. It will open up new doors of opportunities in the future

What is a 2% emiratisation rule?

As per the Emiratisation rule, employers need to hire at least 2% Emirati employees on the total of 50 workers in the company