42 UAE Nationals join hospitality industy under DTCM-Tanmia Maharat programme

Mr. Khalid A bin Sulayem, Director General of Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), and Mr. Ahmed Al Tayer, Chairman of the newly-launched Emirates Nationals Development Programme (ENDP) presented certificates to the graduates and the participating hotels.

Their induction into the service-oriented sector is the fruit of the job-linked Maharat training programme launched by the DTCM's Emiratisation Task Force for Tourism (ETFT) in association with the National Human Resources Development and Employment Authority (TANMIA) to encourage Emirati job-seekers join the fast-expanding hotel industry.

In the first batch of the programme which concluded in December 2005, 33 UAE nationals embarked on new careers with five-star hotels in Dubai after the successfully completing the nine-week training programme.

Mr. bin Sulayem said:

"The ETFT is successfully creating awareness about the job opportunities suitable for the UAE nationals in the emirate's booming tourism industry. Due to heightened awareness and keenness of the participating hotels in our Emiratisation efforts, the number of UAE nationals in this sector has increased significantly. From just 15 UAE nationals in 2002, the number of UAE nationals working in the hotel industry has increased to around 300."

The Emiratisation at the DTCM has reached 77 % and the aim is to achieve 85% target by the year 2010.

The stipend-based training programme has been supported by ACCOR, Crowne Plaza Hotel, Al Habtoor Hospitality, Hilton, Hyatt International Hotels and Resorts, Jebel Ali International Hotels, Jumeirah, Kempinski Mall of the Emirates, Rotana Hotels, Suites and Resorts, and Shangri-La Hotel Dubai. The Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management (EAHM) project managed and conducted the training for the Hospitality Maharat.

The programme contents included English language programme; hotel business communication, hotel interpersonal and team skills workshops,; introduction to the hospitality industry; core hospitality industry workplace skills, introduction to hotel departments, job categories and job competencies.

Mr. Ibrahim Yaqoot, DTCM Manager Human Resources and Chairman of ETFT, said: "The two batch of graduates will encourage others to join the emirate's fast-growing hospitality industry. We see bright prospects for the UAE nationals in the tourism industry. We are complementing the government efforts towards the Emiratisation programme. We take pride that we are working towards offering new career opportunities for the UAE nationals."

The ETFT, created four years ago, will help UAE nationals through the programme obtain employment opportunities. It launched the pilot Maharat programme last year and decided to enlarge its scope considering the huge response it evoked.

Dubai hotel and hotel apartments played host to record over six million guests in 2005. The number of hotel guests is projected to increase as more properties are due to open in the coming months.

The ETFT is made up of representatives from TANMIA, key hospitality sector companies in Dubai along with hospitality industry educational institutions such as the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) and the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management (EAHM)

The DTCM ETFT conducted Hospitality Industry Career Development Summer Programmes in 2002, 2003 and 2004 for UAE national high school students and job seekers.

The outcome of which has been to see the number of UAE nationals working in hotels in Dubai increase from fifteen five years ago to more than two hundred and fifty today. In addition, the ETFT has run best practice Emiratisation workshops targeted at the hospitality industry.

The ETFT intends to run up to five Hospitality Industry Maharat Programmes per year from this year to significantly boost the employment of UAE nationals in hotels. The Task Force looks forward to working in the future with both TANMIA and the Emirates Nationals Development Programme [ENDP].