DED showcases UAE national human development programmes at Careers UAE 2006

The DED organizes and sponsors a series of UAE national human development initiatives. These include training programmes for nationals to start and manage their Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), the Dubai Human Development Award (DHDA) which recognizes organizations that facilitate national human development and the "Intlaq" programme that enables nationals to establish their home based-business.

"We have taken the initiative to guide and mentor young nationals to establish their own small and medium scale enterprises and thereby contribute to the national economy,"

said Khalid Al Kassim, Deputy Director General for Planning and Development at DED. "SMEs generate a wide range of job opportunities for nationals and are an efficient way to integrate young nationals in the dynamics of the UAE economy, while preparing them to take bigger responsibilities in the future," he added.

Al Kassim also highlighted the importance of the Dubai Human Development Award (DHDA) in creating job opportunities for nationals. "Participating entities in DHDA have implemented customized human capital development programmes as part of the Award process in addition to considering DHDA as a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) opportunity through increasing the number of national employees," remarked Al Kassim.

The "Intlaq" programme which was awarded the Best Administrative Project in 2001 by the Dubai Government Excellence Programme, is an initiative to encourage nationals to start their home-based businesses. "Intlaq" is becoming increasingly popular among young nationals wishing to weave their creative ideas into the fabric of the national economy.

"Intlaq works closely with nationals desiring to start their business from the comfort of their homes," said Farid Al Abdullah, Executive Supervisor Business Sector Development Division at the DED. "We support them with information and data that serves their specific purpose, and also offer training programmes to help them build and grow a viable business," he added.