Trade Centre develops job website for nationals

The Dubai World Trade Centre in association with Emirates airline has developed a website where UAE nationals can post details to help them find a job. The site www.dwtc.com/career provides a CV template to which nationals can simply add the details requested. Once the information is provided it becomes part of a national databank.

Employers nationwide seeking access to the database to find qualified staff will be provided with a password and access to the information by the DWTC on request. The site will be officially launched in conjunction with Careers UAE 2001 which will be held December 24-27 at Airport Expo Dubai. Companies will have an opportunity to register for the service at that time.

Ibrahim Al Hashemi, corporate manager of exhibitions at the World Trade Centre, said, "This new service is designed to help support the UAE's emiratisation programme. "Companies seeking to hire nationals will soon have a database which is dedicated exclusively to national jobseekers. With the press of a button, employers will have access to CVs of nationals who have a wide range of work experience and qualifications and are eager to find work."

Al Hashemi added that the project has enthusiastic support from Emirates, one of the region's strongest emiratisation supporters, and the Higher Colleges of Technology. The career website can also be accessed from DWTC's home page at www.dwtc.com.

The concept was an outcome of the first Careers UAE exhibition held last November. Following that event, the DWTC and Emirates recognised that employers needed a tool to access details about the qualified nationals seeking jobs. The website marks the first step in the process.

Naela Al Awadi, a graduate of Dubai Polytechnic's graphic design programme, says she used the service because she knows the DWTC is a trustworthy organisation with a solid presence in the Middle East business community.

"It was a very simple process and it offers a good opportunity for me to make links with potential employers," Al Awadi said. She added that the system saves a significant amount of time and effort because she only needs to complete the information once and it is provided to a wide range of employers.

"We are working closely with the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) to build a database that includes details about many of their former graduates and students currently studying throughout the HCT system," Al Hashemi said.

The HCT, which will mark its 13th year in 2001-02, is the UAE's most extensive post-secondary system, offering a wide range of programmes exclusively to nationals. DWTC is working in partnership with the HCT to help secure work for its graduates. However, the database is not limited to its graduates and all UAE nationals can post their qualifications on the site.