Majid Al Futtaim to hire 3,000 Emiratis to support UAE government’s Nafis programme

UAE shopping malls operator Majid Al Futtaim plans to hire 3,000 Emiratis over the next five years in line with the UAE government’s Nafis initiative, it has announced.

The UAE nationals will be employed in different segments across the Majid Al Futtaim portfolio including retail, leisure, entertainment and cinemas, it said in a statement.

Emiratis currently account for 3 per cent of the total 13,700 UAE-based employees at Majid Al Futtaim. The conglomerate employs more than 43,000 people across its global operations spanning shopping malls, hotels and mixed-use communities. It also operates Carrefour stores in the Middle East,
more than 500 Vox Cinema screens and leisure and entertainment experiences such as Ski Dubai and Magic Planet.

Last week, the UAE government announced that it aims to create 75,000 jobs for its nationals in the private sector as part of its ‘Projects of the 50.’

Read: Projects of the 50: UAE aims to create 75,000 private sector jobs for Emiratis

Alain Bejjani, CEO at Majid Al Futtaim, said: “We have a collective sense of responsibility to support and upskill the talented and ambitious national workforce that exists in the UAE. There have been commendable efforts over the years to create more opportunities for UAE nationals within the public and private sectors. The Nafis programme announced by the UAE government this week will make careers in the private sector even more attractive to young Emiratis, whose contributions are crucial to building a sustainable future. We remain committed to increasing Emirati representation in our company over the next five years.”

Today we announce the expansion of our people development programme that is set to create thousands of career opportunities for Emirati talent across multiple industries in the UAE. (1/3) pic.twitter.com/ervNfgqBqc

— Majid Al Futtaim (@MajidAlFuttaim) September 18, 2021

Majid Al Futtaim will carry out numerous more programmes to recruit Emiratis to the private sector in collaboration with Nafis partners, including the Emirati Talent Competitiveness Council. These include training modules and customised learning curriculums for developing expertise in various areas such as customer experience and data and analytics, as well as job shadowing, coaching, and mentorship.

Recently, the firm announced a coding programme designed specifically for women, the private sector’s first of its kind for the region.

Read: UAE’s Majid Al Futtaim launches region’s first private sector coding programme for women

The announcement is in line with the government-led initiative, ‘Projects of the 50′, aiming to attract 100 coders every day to the UAE’s workforce and attain the highest percentage of female coders per capita in the world in the next five years.