1. No poverty

End poverty in all its forms everywhere - Read about the UAE's efforts to fulfill the SDG 'No poverty' on the UAE's SDGs portal.

Providing decent life for all

The UAE provides high-quality education and plenty of job opportunities in the knowledge-driven economy of the UAE. It undertakes many efforts to maintain the standard of high-quality education and provide a fair job market. It ensures that citizens and residents are capable of earning a decent livelihood and enjoy quality life in the UAE.

Education

The UAE sets a huge part of its budget to develop the education sector. In the year 2020, the public, university and higher education programmes received AED 10.41 billion, equal to 14.8% of the federal budget.

Ministry of Education (MoE) developed Education 2020 strategy which is a series of ambitious five-year plans designed to develop of a first-rate education system after a complete transformation of the current education system and teaching methods.

The Government laid down several laws that make education compulsory. It is compulsory for Emirati children to start schooling at the age of 6 and remain in school until they complete Grade 12 or reach the age of 18, whichever occurs first.

In addition, the Cabinet issued directives to prepare an integrated National Literacy Strategy and a framework to produce a reading generation and establish the UAE as the capital of cultural and knowledge content.

Ministry of Education launched initiatives aiming to upgrade the education standards in the UAE according to best international practices. These initiatives include:

School Leadership Development Project (SLP)
School Olympic Games Project
School Health Education Project
School health screening.

Education of people of determination (those with special needs)

The UAE Government passed the Federal Law No. 29 of 2006 which protects the rights of people of determination (those with special needs) to education. Students of determination are entitled to enrol in any school, without exception. They are catered for by Department of Special Education, which was established in 2008 by Ministry of Education. Ministry of Education provides expert teachers who specialise in dealing with children of determination. MoE offers several training programmes and facilities targeting children of determination, their parents and kindergarten teachers.

Read more about services and information under education.

Jobs

As for the jobs sector, Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) ensures increased job opportunities and a fair job market for all.

Emiratisation is implemented in almost all sectors in the UAE. Every company with more than 100 employees is obliged to recruit (and retain on the payroll) the stipulated number of UAE nationals to ensure the minimum percentage of participation of Emiratis in the workforce.

Following a strategic plan to promote Emiratisation, MoHRE decided to localise more jobs in the private sector. Starting from 2017, companies that are registered with Tas'heel's online services and that employ over 1000 workers would be required to hire Emirati citizens for the data entry positions.

MoHRE decided that all construction facilities with a workforce of 500 or more employees must appoint at least one Emirati occupational health and safety officer from 2017.

Companies that employ over 1,000 workers and are registered with Tas'heel's online services will be required to hire Emiratis for data entry positions from 2017 or they will not be provided additional work permits.

MoHRE provides training programmes for Emirati jobseekers. Emirates National Development Programme provides tips for preparing for interviews.

The ‘UAE Labour law’ governs the labour rights of employees in the private sector. Here are some of the key provisions of the Labour Law:

working hours
official leaves and vacations
wages Protection System (WPS)
end of service benefits
safety at work place
accommodation
insurance

There are special provisions for working women, people of determination (those with special needs), minors and students.

To protect the rights of blue-collar workers, in January 2016, MoHRE approved a third language to be added on the job offer, labour contract and annexure. In addition to Arabic and English, employees can choose from the following 9 languages: Bengali, Chinese, Dari, Hindi, Malayalam, Nepalese, Sinhalese, Tamil and Urdu. This applies to workers coming from outside and those residing in the UAE that are seeking a new job, or moving from one company to another.

Read more about services and information under jobs.

Reforming the labour market

One important feature of the UAE is the diversity of its population. It hosts millions of workers of more than 200 nationalities from around the globe. The Government is committed to the implementation of comprehensive strategies to protect workers’ rights, particular of those in lower-paid jobs according to the prevailing labour legislation.

Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) developed a strategy to ensure the right of workers to receive their wages, as well as mechanisms to achieve more flexibility and freedom of movement between different jobs and to provide workers with suitable housing and a safe working environment.

It also made measures to protect workers from illegal recruiters, abuse and non-payment of wages. Many of these initiatives are implemented in association with the Governments of labour-supplying countries. The UAE recognised that many of the problems that affect the labour force can only be effectively tackled in their country of origin.

Besides working to enhance the protection of the rights of its immigrant labour force, the UAE also continues to participate actively in the international campaign to eradicate human trafficking. Much of the work in this field is done in collaboration with the United Nations and its specialised agencies.

Read more about UAE efforts to eradicate human trafficking on the page ‘Combatting human trafficking’.

Read more about safety of workers in the UAE.

Laws and regulations to protect labourers

The UAE implements several employment-related laws and ratified international conventions to ensure safety and protection of labour. Read more about protection of workers’ rights in the UAE private sector.

Social protection systems for labourers

The UAE has established offices in courts to provide legal support to workers in labour disputes and labour care units across the UAE to provide protection for workers and raise awareness of their rights. If an employee has a complaint or a query, he can call MoHRE's 24-hour toll-free number:600590000 . In addition, the UAE availed certain systems and services to ensure workers protection, these include:

Insurance system for workers in the private sector (Taa-meen)

Called Taa-meen, this insurance will provide a maximum insurance coverage of AED 20,000 to every worker and protect them from the company’s bankruptcy or failure to get their legitimate dues. In case the insurance company pays the worker, the employer will have to repay the same to the insurance company.

Unemployment Insurance scheme

The Unemployment Insurance scheme is a form of insurance/social security that provides Emiratis and residents working in the federal and private sectors, financial support if they lose their jobs, as a result of termination by their employers. It aims to ensure continued decent living for the unemployed and achieve a competitive knowledge economy by attracting and retaining best international talent.

Wages Protection System (WPS)

The UAE has put in place the Wages Protection System (WPS) to ensure and protect the rights of workers, and to establish trust between organisations and their employees. Under this system, salaries of employees will be transferred to their accounts in banks or financial institutions, which are authorised by Central Bank of the UAE to provide the service.

eComplaint request

MoHRE has launched digital channels which allow the employee to report online any grievances he has with the employer with complete confidentiality.

The ‘My Salary’ service

The ‘My Salary’ service is one of the most important services launched by MoHRE for the social protection of the workers. It facilitates the workers to report delay in salary payment. This process maintains strict confidentiality to preserve the workers from any adverse actions by their employers.

Reforming the domestic workers’ sector

To ensure decent working and living conditions for domestic workers, the UAE Cabinet and the Federal National Council approved a new draft Domestic Labour Law that regulates four key areas in the protection of domestic workers:

contracts
rights and privileges
prohibitions
recruitment agencies.

The new law establishes the principle of informed consent, ensuring that workers are aware of the contract terms, nature of work, the workplace, the remuneration and the period of daily and weekly rest as set out by the executive regulations and before they cross their national borders.

Under the new law, Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation is responsible for domestic workers’ rules and regulations.

Read about the Domestic Labour Law.

Financing businesses

Read about:

The UAE's Government support to small and medium enterprises (SMEs)
Services and information under business.
the sustainable development goal 'No poverty'.

UAE's global contributions to end poverty

At the international level, the UAE is a key contributor to many international humanitarian initiatives, especially in providing relief to victims of natural disasters and socio-conflicts. Between 2011 and 2014, the UAE donated AED 8.9 billion to eradicate poverty worldwide. It has also maintained its ranking as one of the 10 largest donor states as per the Official Development Aid (ODA) in 2015. In 2016, the UAE spent AED15.23 billion worth of development assistance.

Several government-financed organisations in the UAE provide humanitarian assistance across the world. These include:

Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) - Since its establishment in 1983, ERC has been playing a leading role in promoting different aspects of humanitarian work on both domestic and international levels, regardless of ethnic, cultural, geographic or religious considerations. In 2001, ERC was selected as the second best humanitarian authority in Asia.
Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) - It was established in 1971 to help developing countries achieve sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty.
Sheikh Khalifa Foundation - Since its inception in 2007, its contribution to health, education and infrastructure has reached more than 87 countries worldwide.
Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives (MBRGI) - Inaugurated in October 2015, it supports more than 130 million people in 116 countries around the world.

MBRGI constructed the largest infrastructure and logistics system in the world on an area of 700,000 square feet to provide facilities and services for charitable and humanitarian institutions. It encompasses more than 30 institutions and initiatives that operate more than 1,400 development programmes, covering five main sectors:

Updated on 07 Nov 2023

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