Abu Dhabi: The Government must set policies in place to resolve the issue of unemployment among UAE nationals. The National Statistics Bureau stated that it has reached a level of 20 per cent of national manpower.
The Absher initiative has employed 1,186 Emiratis since the five-year programme began in May.
Absher, an Arabic phrase meaning ‘your request has been met with approval’, aims at hiring 20,000 Emiratis in the private sector in five years.
His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said on Thursday at the honouring ceremony of companies excelling in offering jobs for Emiratis, that under the Absher initiative, the private sector must shoulder its social responsibility by hiring Emiratis in order to reduce the unemployment rate and proactively boost the levels of UAE nationals in the workplace.
Since the unemployment issue in the UAE is multi-faceted, the Government got involved in partnerships with main private sector companies to solve the issue, integrating them into the workforce.
Absher was initiated due to over-reliance on the public sector for employing Emiratis since jobs in the government are nearly saturated.
“I thank the private-sector companies, which participated in this initiative and contributed to the development of our country and its economy,” said Shaikh Mohammad, calling on the other companies in the private sector to join the initiative and provide jobs for Emiratis.
Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, said that the private sector plays a pivotal role in the economy of the UAE as it provides about 5 million jobs.
