Dubai – Decypha: With 200 different nationalities living and working in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the country is the most cosmopolitan destination in the world. Currently, 90% of the UAE population are foreigners, according to the 2017 World Population Review. This is the highest percentage of expats in any country, according to the 2016 World Migration Report (WMP). Its ideals, policies, massive economic boom and increasing cultural and social openness attracting expats to work for established firms or venture with opening their own family business in the country.
A lot of expats are staying in the UAE for good. “What makes them stay and make the UAE their second home is the conducive environment that the government has ensured,” said James Mathew, senior partner, Crowe Horwath, and secretary-general of the Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC), a Dubai-based industry body representing only Indian businesses, talking to Khaleej Times last January. And while the standard of living and services in the UAE are constantly improving, they are also becoming increasingly expensive. Dubai and Abu Dhabi are ranked the 20th and 23rd most expensive cities to live in, respectively, compared to the next GCC city; Riyadh, ranked 57th; according to Mercer’s 2017 Cost of Living Survey. “It's long-term residents and entrepreneurs who are being hurt the most,” said Nima Abu Wardeh, the founder of the personal finance website cashy.me, in a blog on The National in March. This is gradually improving the financial feasibility of relocating to other, more affordable, GCC cities even if career and income prospects are lower than in the UAE.
More and More Jobs in UAE
The UAE is an increasingly attractive business destination, ranked 26th in the World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2017 compared to 34th in the previous report. Standout points include being the best place in the world to pay taxes. It is also ranked 4th worldwide in getting construction permits and electricity. Meanwhile, 2016’s legislative reforms allowed the UAE to rank 9th in protecting minority investors compared to 48th last year. Reforms also improved the “Starting a Business” rank to 53rd from 65th last year. Registering property (11th) and enforcing contracts (25th) are other attractive criteria.
Such an attractive investment environment coupled with around 900,000 UAE nationals made it inevitable that expats would be hired to fill these newly-created jobs. For 2017, EZ Heights, a classifieds website, reported that employers in the UAE will require 30% more employees compared to 2016. “The jobs [being offered] are leaning towards technology. This is a result of the increase in public reliance on technology and application-based products,” said Adham Saleh, CEO of EZ Heights, talking to Gulf News in December 2016. “[For example] Dubai is fast becoming a smart city, with many technology companies, it makes sense that these sectors are increasing in employee demand.” Monster.com, another classifieds website, forecasts similar stats, attributing the hike to Expo 2020, a one-time global exposition expected to last at least six months in 2020. The website said that construction jobs will see the most openings until the event’s construction works are completed.
Meanwhile, accounting and tax-related job opportunities are opening in the UAE for expats due to the expected implementation of VAT in 2018, as per the government. “This is leading to a surge in tax experts coming into the region. It’s definitely an exciting time for our tax accountants, and there will be huge growth in this area across the entire GCC,” said Sharon Ditchburn, who owns Capital Advantage, a corporate governance and compliance consultancy in the UAE, talking to INTHEBLACK magazine in June.
There is also demand for skilled expats in operations, sales and engineering remains high. So much so, that recruiting teams in the UAE and the GCC region in general are advised “to start thinking more strategically about how to find and recruit these talent pools,” said Ali Matar, head of LinkedIn talent solutions for growth markets, southern Europe, Middle East and North Africa, talking to Gulf Business in December 2016.
The UAE Melting Pot
A major reason why expats are staying in the UAE for years is its integrated and accommodating community. Part of this integration is its religious tolerance and integration in a predominantly Muslim country with Islamic-based laws. “People bond with each other without inhibition,” said Father Lennie Connully, head priest at St Mary’s Parish in Dubai, to Gulf News in May 2016. “This kind of harmony I have seen only in the UAE.” This extends to religions such as the Sikh which is a panentheistic religion compared to the three monotheistic Abrahamic religions; Islam, Christianity and Judaism. In 2012, a Sikh temple was opened in Jebel Ali, funded by the UAE government. “I have lived in the UAE for over 40 years and have imbibed the best traditions of happiness and tolerance,” said Surinder Singh Kandhari, Chairman of the Guru Nanak Darbar, a Sikh religious institution that serves 50,000 Sikhs living in the UAE. Kandhari is also the owner of Al Dobowi Group, a tire distribution company that started in Dubai in 1976. His current net worth, according to Arabian Business, is $520 million.
Living in the UAE has also seemingly overcome a 70-year political and blood feud between the Indians and Pakistanis. “We might have our differences [back in our respective countries] but in the UAE, we learn to agree to disagree and respect everyone’s viewpoint,” said Faisal Ikram, General Secretary of the Pakistan Association Dubai, a body representing Pakistanis in the Dubai, talking to Gulf News in May 2016. The Association organizes monthly health camps, which provides medical attention to everyone for free, including Indians. “Religion or nationality is not a barrier for us and we serve everyone equally at this health camp and also when we visit labour housing,” said Ikram. “Coming to UAE, I was able to value the spirit of tolerance and inclusion in everyday life.”
Government Efforts
Ongoing reforms have played a vital role in creating this community. In 2015, the government passed an anti-discrimination law with penalties ranging from DH 50,000 to DH 2 million with prison sentence ranging from six months to over 10 years. It includes all forms of discrimination and hate-speech published in books, newspapers, promotional material and online media. It also outlaws labeling people as atheists or nonbelievers. The law “guarantees the freedom of individuals from religious intolerance… and underpins the UAE’s policy of inclusiveness,” said Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai when the law was announced.
In February 2016, the UAE government created the Ministry of State for Tolerance. Among its tasks is launching local, regional and international initiatives that promote tolerance. The Ministry is currently working on the National Programme for Tolerance launched mid-2016 as part of the UAE’s Vision 2021 plan. "Many of the initiatives and activities are designed to ensure the continuity and sustainability of the Emirati community as a tolerant and open society to all cultures, nationalities and religions,” said Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, the minister, in November 2016 during Tolerance Day event.
Two months later, the Emirate of Abu Dhabi announced that, for the first time, non-Muslim expats can write their wills free from sharia’a-law, which allows 25% of the inheritance to be distributed as per a will, while the rest is divided based on Islamic law. This law specifically caters to non-Muslim foreigners who choose to live the rest of their lives in the UAE. Abu Dhabi is following in the footsteps of Dubai, which in May 2015 created the Wills and Probate Registry overseen by Dubai International Financial Center where non-Muslim expat wills are registered to guarantee that the inheritance would be divided as per its instructions and not sharia’a-law. "A non-Muslim expat can now easily register his will in English to whoever he chooses to, whether his wife, daughter or any member of the family,” said Hesham Elrafei, the founder of the Lex Animata, a UAE legal portal, speaking to The National in May.
UAE vs. GCC
The mix of tolerance and increasing business opportunities have allowed the UAE to rank 12th on HSBC Expat Explorer report for 2017 which measures how expat-friendly a country is. The UAE is only surpassed by Bahrain, which ranks 9th. Meanwhile, Oman ranks 18th, Qatar 29th, Saudi Arabia 31st and lastly Kuwait 35th.
The report’s first criterion; economics; revolves around personal finances, local economic outlook and career progression. The UAE ranks 5th highest in the world after Switzerland, Singapore, Germany and Norway. The closest GCC country is Qatar (8th) and Saudi Arabia (11th). The report survey shows that 87% of expats in the UAE are confident about the economic outlook of the country, and hence career and income.
The UAE, however, falls behind Oman and Bahrain in the Experience criterion, which deals with quality of life, how easy it is to integrate with the locals and finding accommodation. The UAE is ranked 19th compared to Bahrain,ranked 6th, and Oman, 15th. In terms of rank breakdown, Bahrain surges ahead of UAE in integrating expats in the community and finding accommodation, being ranked in the top 10 in both while the UAE is outside the top 20 in both. The UAE is also outranked by Bahrain in the Family criterion, which addresses relationships, education and childcare, and raising children (UAE is ranked 22nd versus Bahrain ranked 9th).
Rising Cost of Living
Almost all of the UAE's lowest rankings in the HSBC report are attributed to the rising cost of living, which is hurting expats’ financial plans and testing the financial feasibility of continuing to work and live in the country. This is inevitable given how tough the competition is in the UAE where salaries must be higher than the competition to retain the most qualified employees from around the world.
While this has reflected positively on the quality of services, the cost of these services is increasing, mainly to cover rising expat salaries. Around 81% of expats in the UAE say that the cost of raising children has increased since they relocated, according to the HSBC report. Meanwhile, 88% of expats say the overall cost of raising children in the UAE is higher than in their home country compared to 62% global average based on the HSBC report.
The pace by which the cost of living is increasing is forcing some expats to consider their employment and stay options in the UAE. “I've recently come across a growing number of people who are packing up and leaving the UAE, others who are seriously contemplating it, and many who are being vocal about their pain, but are staying put - for now,” said Nima.
By Tamer Mahfouz
