Opinion | Columnists
Shoring up national identity
The UAE is facing a major demographic shift within its own population. About 65 per cent of the UAE national population is under 25 years old, which means that in ten years time over 75 per cent or more will be under 35 years old.
- By Francis Matthew, Editor at Large
- Published: 00:15 April 17, 2008
- Image Credit: Illustration: Nino Jose Heredia/Gulf News
In today's UAE it is commonplace that a UAE national couple can go out for an evening meal and in many restaurants around the country, they will neither be able to read the menu in their own language, nor be able to order their food in their own language. Many restaurants do not have menus printed in Arabic, and many waiters are unable to speak Arabic.
The same applies to many very ordinary things: going to the cinema and buying a ticket and popcorn; trying on new shoes in a shop; getting your car repaired. All these incidents on their own are fairly minor moments of life, but they add up to a continuing and persistent requirement on any UAE national to be able to step out of the native UAE culture, in his own country. And such incidents from daily life are relatively innocent, when compared to the UAE nationals having to deal with the many cultural, religious and other social values that the expatriates all bring with them from their homelands to the UAE.
These are the triggers for many UAE nationals' concerns about their own national identity. This kind of pressure on a country's culture and language would be a major issue at the best of times in any country but in the UAE at the moment it is particularly important.
First, the small population of UAE nationals needs to maintain its sense of self while being only about 15 per cent of the total population in the country. The many cultures of the 85 per cent majority of expatriates will profoundly affect how the UAE nationals live their lives.
The second challenge for the UAE is how to develop its identity as the new generation of UAE citizens grow up, with very different expectations and experiences from that of the previous generations. The new UAE is hopes to be a self-confident Arab nation which is a willing part of the global community, but at the same time remains true to its own origins as an Arab and Gulf people.
The first challenge of reinforcing the national identity within the present demographic mix is top of the mind at the moment, and it was the subject of a two-day conference in Abu Dhabi this week, as many senior nationals gathered to debate their fears and hopes, and to define a practical way forward.
Some advocated dealing with the demographic balance or community profile [the proportion and mix of nationalities resident in the UAE] by imposing immigration controls or employment limits in particular sectors to reduce the proportion of nationalities which are presently dominant, while others emphasised the importance of the UAE commitment to openness and tolerance, and spoke more about developing the fast growing UAE population to redress the demographic balance of having too many expatriates in the country.
But the second challenge will not go away. The UAE is facing a major demographic shift within its own population. About 65 per cent of the UAE national population is under 25 years old, which means that in ten years time over 75 per cent or more will be under 35 years old. This means that the present older generation which provides today's social leadership will become a small minority within the UAE population. The widespread and genuine concern is that the 75 per cent who are under 35 years old may not know, or not understand, or appreciate the Arab and uniquely Gulf culture that is the core of the UAE identity. This overwhelming concern is something that should be appreciated by anyone that knows the UAE. It is something that expatriates, residents and visitors, can share. It is also why the UAE places such importance on education and training, since in the end it is only the young people of the UAE who will find the answer to these issues.
Finally, it is very important that this emotive subject is discussed openly by both nationals and expatriates in a calm and practical manner with respect for all sides. Such a debate can easily become can become very heated, which is natural since strong feelings are raised on all sides.
The expatriates must recognise that the nationals have a valid and urgent concern, which needs to be addressed, and it is not necessarily a threat to the expatriates' working or leaving in the UAE, although it might well require some changes.
Too many expatriates are far too defensive when listening to UAE nationals discussing the demographic balance and the challenges it raises for the UAE nationals' identity. The expatriates leap to the conclusion that they are being criticised and resort to the refrain of "we all helped build this country and where would they be without us".
But such a response is to miss the point. For many nationals discussing the UAE identity, the continuing presence of large numbers of expatriates is not in question. The government deliberately planned a far larger economy than could be built by the native UAE population alone, and this is not in question at all.
The question the UAE population is dealing with is how not to be swamped in this process, and to remain true to their heritage and carry it forward into the future.
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