MANAMA, 27 September 2007 — Emiratization efforts in the UAE are increasingly being driven by private-sector initiatives rather than enforced quotas, a high-profile roundtable discussion hosted by online recruitment leader Bayt.com and featuring leading industry players, has revealed.
Abdul Rahim Sultan, employer relations manager at Tanmia (National Human Resource Development and Employment Authority), said the UAE government is taking a more “flexible” approach to the issue, while companies are showing more motivation and initiative when it comes to hiring nationals.
“The quota system was not meant to impose (Emiratization) on companies but to encourage them, because of the benefits of having nationals in certain roles,” Sultan said. Tanmia’s main drive today, he added, is not to enforce quotas, but to help young UAE nationals develop their skills and initiate their career.
Participants at the event explored ongoing efforts to boost the participation of GCC nationals in the private sector. Along with Tanmia, the panel consisted of representatives from private companies across a wide range of sectors, and discussions covered everything from the need for more entrepreneurship in the region to the increasingly important role of the Internet in the recruitment process.
“If you limit yourself to quotas and penalties, it becomes a numbers game,” said Tina Mascarenhas, Manager Human Capital, Metito, the world leader in water and waste water treatment technology. “Emiratization must be one of the company’s strategic objectives.”
Mascarenhas’ words reflected the prevailing sentiment at the roundtable, which saw some spirited debate concerning the pros and cons of enforced nationalization. “We should recruit on a need basis rather than quotas,” said Ahmed Al-Tenaiji, marketing manager, Zabeel Investments, a UAE-based multi-diversified investment firm. “Penalties don’t work.”
“In 2005, the percentage of UAE nationals in the trade sector was 0.019 percent,” Sultan said. “It rose to two percent the year after, because of penalty enforcement. The year after that, it rose to four percent but without penalties. The rise was due to companies agreeing, after having tried it out, that it’s a good idea to hire nationals.”
He added that retention rates among nationals currently stand at around 40 percent. The main reason for their moving on, he said, was “because there was no career development plan within the organization.”
Sultan emphasized the need for strategic planning at the corporate level in order for nationalization efforts to be successful as opposed to ad hoc unstudied approaches to nationalization. He stressed that in order to succeed, nationalization targets should be aligned with the strategic needs of the organization and that nationalization programs should include clear career development paths for hired professionals.