Abu Dhabi: More than 40 public, private and educational institutions are taking part in a three-day career fair for army recruits being held in the capital’s Madinat Zayed.
Organised by the UAE Armed Forces, the event bids to secure a bright future for recruits who have joined the national service by bringing them closer to the organisations interested in availing of their skill sets.
The first-time event was inaugurated by Rear Admiral and Pilot Shaikh Saeed Bin Hamdan Bin Mohammad Al Nahyan, Commander of the UAE Navy.
A number of participating entities have expressed their desire to hire soldiers, both men and women, due to their discipline and hard-working nature, among other characteristics, they have gained during service to the country.
The Ministry of Interior also revealed that it is giving army servicemen and women priority in obtaining jobs due to their capabilities. Additionally, the Dubai Police has designated a section in its wing at the event specifically for providing national service graduates with a Good Conduct Certificate — a requirement for those wishing to become part of Dubai Police.
Brigadier Ahmad Mohammad Rafi, director of the General Department of Human Resources at Dubai Police, said that it is planning on hiring 169 individuals at the fair.
Dubai Police have also made it very simple for national service graduates to get a job at the police force, adding that they can do so within 10 minutes. The whole process of joining the Dubai Police has been made easier for Emiratis in general, Brig Rafi said.
In fact, the Dubai Police is conducting on-site tests for interested recruits, providing them with immediate results.
The Emirates Defence Industries Company alone has 450 vacancies in engineering, maintenance and technical fields. It is offering 300 to 350 national and international educational scholarships to recruits, a spokesperson said.
The Defence Company also said that its current level of nationalisation is about 30 per cent with that number expected to go up in administrative and other departments.
Telecommunications company etisalat is also offering 100 jobs in a number of fields with a chance for potential employees to receive training. Etisalat also allows those interested to pursue higher education if they wish.
Meanwhile, the Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company du revealed that it encourages its own employees to enlist in National Service and that so far 35 have already done so.
Previously, Emirati high school graduates between the ages of 18-30 were only required to serve nine months as part of their national service. However, that period has been extended to 12 months, the UAE National and Reserve Service Authority announced in March.
The service is optional for women in that age group as they can only enlist once they receive their parents’ consent.
