UAE ranks among top 25 countries for global talent

The United States ranks fourth, followed by Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Australia and the United Kingdom.

The ninth annual report is published in partnership with the Portulans Institute and the Singapore Institute for Human Capital Leadership.

“Rich countries make up the majority Talent Championwhile most talent laggards happen to be poor economies,” the report said.

“This correlation is not set in stone: well-balanced and economically sound strategies allow economies of all types to improve their ability to grow, attract and retain talent.”

In recent years, the UAE has undertaken a number of economic, legal and social reforms to Attract skilled workers.

Government reforms to several visa programs have increased opportunities for foreign workers to live and work in the country.This includes the 10 Year Golden Visa Simplify eligibility criteria and expand beneficiary categories.

This green visa Five-year residency for skilled workers without a sponsor or employer was also introduced.

The UAE has also recently implemented a New Unemployment Insurance Program Available to federal government and private sector employees, all workers must subscribe from January 1, 2023.

It will pay Emiratis and residents of the private and public sectors up to three months in cash if they lose their jobs.

The GTCI rankings are measured by six pillars: Enablement, Attraction, Growth, Retention, Vocational and Technical Skills, and Global Knowledge Skills.

The UAE is particularly strong on the “attractiveness” pillar, ranking fourth behind Luxembourg, Singapore and Switzerland. The report highlights the country’s high level of openness to foreign talent, opportunities for growth and the possibility of lifelong learning.

The biggest pillar of the UAE’s room for improvement is “retention”, where the country ranks 51st.

At the same time, the GTCI report said global economic uncertainty could have a “negative and sometimes irreversible impact” on the talent situation in poorer economies.

Even in higher-income economies, labor markets are likely to become more fragmented and create new inequalities, the study said.

New job trends, such as “quiet quitting” and a younger generation’s penchant for gig and part-time work, are calling for new ways to develop, attract and retain talent, the study said.

“Governments, business and talent are feeling the negative compounding effects of financial, food and energy shocks, especially in poor and emerging economies,” said Felipe, co-author of the report, GTCI Academic Director and INSEAD Senior Affiliate Professor Monteiro said the strategy.

“This could exacerbate inequalities in the global talent landscape, hindering progress towards key SDGs.”

Efforts to reduce the talent inequalities most likely to prevent the world from achieving certain SDGs are urgently needed, the report said.

It said this was linked to the Sustainable Development Goals on quality education, gender equality, decent work, economic growth and reducing inequalities.

Mr Monteiro said swift action was urgently needed to reduce talent inequality.

He said governments and organisations should support economic and education reforms that allow younger generations to contribute through higher levels of entrepreneurship, innovation and productivity.

The GTCI report says cities can play a central role in reducing inequality by adopting the right talent policies.

For the second year in a row, San Francisco was the No. 1 city in the Global Urban Talent Competitiveness Index, followed by Boston and Zurich.

Seattle, Lausanne, Singapore, Geneva, Helsinki, Munich and Dublin round out the top 10 of the world’s most competitive cities for talent.

Abu Dhabi ranks 39th in the global city rankings, while Dubai ranks 46th.

The five pillars used to measure the ranking are: Enabling, Attracting, Developing and Retaining Talent, and Global Knowledge Skills.

“Cities continue to outpace most nation-states in the global competition for talent,” said report co-author Bruno Lanvin.

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Top 15 companies to work for in the UAE, according to LinkedIn – in pictures

He said gender inequality needed “renewed and accelerated efforts” as it widened again since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Lanvin said equal educational opportunities for girls and equal leadership opportunities for women were critical to reducing inequality.

Updated: November 8, 2022, 6:08 am