506% increase in the number of citizens working in the private sector.. “Nafis” records historic numbers in the labor market

The Emirates Competitiveness Council organized a media briefing to introduce the most prominent developments related to the “NAFES” program following the decision to extend “NAFES” until the year 2040, and the adoption of a package of updates, coinciding with the Year of the Family, including the announcement of upcoming strategic initiatives and directions, within the framework of continuous efforts aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of national cadres and empowering them in the labor market, noting that NAFS achieved historic numbers in the Emirati labor market, where the number of citizens working in the private sector reached 176 thousand citizens. They work for more than 32 thousand companies, and the percentage of increase in the number of citizens working in the private sector during the last five years reached 506%, while the updates to the program included standardizing the minimum salary to be eligible for support from the “Nafes” program at 6 thousand dirhams per month for all categories covered, provided that the monthly salary does not exceed 20 thousand dirhams.

In detail, the Council explained that the decision to extend was accompanied by a package of qualitative updates that included amending the child allowance program for citizens working in the private sector without specifying an upper limit on the number of children, in addition to expanding the scope of support to include the children of female citizens working in the private sector, and the wives of citizens working in the private sector, in a way that consolidates the social and economic impact of the program, and enhances the stability of the Emirati family and quality of life, in conjunction with the “Year of the Family 2026.”

The Council stressed that the extension of the “NAFES” program reflects its position as one of the pivotal national programs that has contributed to empowering Emirati cadres, in light of the successes it has achieved since its launch about five years ago, which confirms its effectiveness in supporting the stability of citizens working in the private sector and enhancing the competitiveness of national competencies, in line with the country’s priorities and future vision.

The Secretary-General of the Emirates Competitiveness Council, Ghanem Al Mazrouei, confirmed during the briefing that was organized the day before yesterday in Abu Dhabi, that Nafs has moved from applying the saying of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, may God protect him, do not worry, to applying the saying of His Highness You will see us emerge stronger, as the focus on quantity in the last phase of the Nafs program has been completed, to focusing on quality in the next phase of the program, through the direction of localizing vital jobs and strategic sectors. Pointing out that health and education jobs are among the most prominent jobs that will be focused on in the coming period and work is being done to prepare citizens to join them.

He said: “At a time when many countries around the world were rearranging their economic priorities and facing the repercussions of the Corona pandemic, the UAE took the initiative to launch the “Nafis” program as a strategic step that reflects its confidence in the future and its investment in people. Since its launch, the program has represented a model of a proactive vision aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of national competencies and empowering them in the private sector.

Al Mazrouei added: In 2026, despite the current geopolitical and economic changes, the state continued to develop this trend by announcing the extension of the program until 2040, in addition to launching new packages that include broader segments of beneficiaries, reflecting an ongoing commitment to supporting citizens and enhancing the sustainability of the national labor market.

He continued: “We had hoped that the Nafes program would extend until 2030, but the wise leadership surprised us and decided to extend the program until 2040, believing that investing in the citizen element is an investment in the future, that it is a wealth that must be preserved, and that job stability is matched by social and economic stability.”

Strategic objectives
Al Mazrouei explained that the strategic objectives of the Nafs 2040 program include empowering national competencies by building human capabilities capable of competition and innovation and enhancing their readiness to lead future vital sectors, establishing a sustainable qualitative Emiratisation system by moving from quantitative Emiratisation to Emiratisation based on efficiency and productivity, enhancing job and economic stability and providing integrated support packages that ensure the continuity of citizens in the private sector, supporting family stability and enhancing community cohesion through policies that take into account the family dimension and link professional empowerment and quality of life for the Emirati family, in addition to Aligning the outputs of national cadres with the requirements of the future economy to develop future skills to keep pace with economic and technological transformations.

Exceptional achievements
He revealed that the Nafs program has achieved exceptional achievements and historical numbers in the labor market over the past five years, including: the number of citizens in the private sector reached 176 thousand citizens, of which 16,271 have work permits from other parties, and the number of private sector establishments that have hired citizens reached 32 thousand establishments, and the number of citizens who have joined the private and banking sector since the launch of Nafs in 2021 and are still working has reached 159 thousand citizens, and the number of citizens who have joined the private sector since The beginning of 2026 until the end of March was 11 thousand citizens, and the total number of beneficiaries of the financial support programs “2021-2026” reached more than 150 thousand citizens, and the total number of children included in the child allowance support reached 38 thousand people. In terms of empowering women and the family, women recorded a remarkable presence in the private sector, as their percentage reached 74% of the total beneficiaries.

Strategic impact
He pointed out that Nafs has achieved a major strategic impact, as the attractiveness of the private sector among new graduates (2022-2025) increased from 15% to 58%, and the rate of increase in the income of citizens benefiting from the Nafs program reached 50%, and the number of new subscribers from the private sector in retirement funds (2021-2025) increased from 2,000 subscribers to 82,000 subscribers, and the rate of increase in the number of citizens working in the private sector in the period “2021” reached – 2026″ about 506%.

Al Mazrouei stressed that Nafes’ success journey witnessed many achievements. Within the framework of specific programs and initiatives, 46 graduates were graduated from the “Nafes” Leadership Program, which is a program for preparing leaders in the private sector, and 30 members were affiliated with the Nafes International Program, which provides international training opportunities for Emirati members. Within the framework of training and qualification programs, the program achieved more than 3,500 students and graduates from programs for developing medical and health sector cadres, and 7,700 beneficiaries of the program. Competencies, an experience program, and a training program for the purpose of employment, and providing more than 65,000 individual counseling sessions to support job seekers and workers in the private sector. The enablers framework included: more than 90,000 job opportunities presented on the Nafes platform, with the aim of providing job opportunities in the private sector, and 235 winners in the individuals and establishments categories of the Nafes Award to honor distinguished people in the private sector, in addition to 15 members of the Nafes Youth Council who form an effective communication bridge with young people in the private sector.

Unifying the minimum salary for eligibility for support
Al Mazrouei announced that in the context of enhancing job and financial stability for citizens working in the private sector, and in line with the decision of the Council of Ministers and the decision of the Central Bank of the Emirates regarding the minimum wage, it was decided to unify the minimum salary to be eligible for support from the “Nafis” program at 6 thousand dirhams per month for all categories covered.

Under the updates, the maximum value of financial support for the salaries of citizens working in the private sector reaches 6,000 dirhams for holders of a bachelor’s degree, 5,000 dirhams for holders of a diploma, 4,000 dirhams for holders of a high school diploma, 4,000 dirhams for those who are married or have children who are below high school, and 3,000 dirhams for those who are below high school, provided that the monthly salary does not exceed 20,000 dirhams.

Mechanism for implementing the Citizens’ Salaries Support Program
He said: “The new mechanism for the benefit value is scheduled to be applied as of September 2026 to new beneficiaries, while the application to current beneficiaries of the salary support program for citizens working in the private sector will be implemented gradually, ensuring gradual application and taking into account the categories covered. Under the new mechanism, an automatic update of the benefit value will be carried out as of September 2026, with a descending difference of 500 dirhams every six months, until it reaches the value specified in accordance with the new decision.”

Employees outside the “Human Resources” umbrella
Al Mazrouei added: “For workers in the private sector outside the umbrella of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation and the Central Bank of the Emirates, including workers in free zones, the gradual update mechanism will be applied to them if the monthly salary is less than the approved minimum, within the categories to which the minimum wage decisions do not apply. They will be eligible to benefit from the support when the salary is corrected to the minimum amount of 6,000 dirhams, so that 100% of the value of the current support is disbursed to the citizen for a period of six months starting from September. 2026, then 70% of the value of the current support will be disbursed for an additional 6 months, followed by disbursement of 30% of the value of the support for a period of three months.”

Expanding the umbrella of support
Al Mazrouei stated that the scope of benefiting from “Nafis” support has been expanded to include the children of female citizens working in the private sector, and the wives of female citizens working in the private sector, in confirmation of the UAE’s established approach to developing a comprehensive national support system that keeps pace with societal changes and translates the directives of the wise leadership in consolidating family stability and enhancing the competitiveness of national cadres, by expanding the base of beneficiaries in a way that enhances job empowerment opportunities and supports the sustainability of the work of male and female citizens in the private sector, especially since this addition contributes to alleviating the burdens. Family.

Conditions for benefiting from support for children of female citizens
He pointed out that the conditions for benefiting from the support for the children of female citizens working in the private sector are: that the monthly salary should not be less than 6 thousand dirhams, and not exceed 20 thousand dirhams, with a minimum of a bachelor’s degree accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research. The value of salary support within this program reaches up to 3 thousand dirhams per month.

Supporting the salaries of citizens’ wives
While the program to support the salaries of wives of citizens working in the private sector requires that the monthly salary not be less than 6 thousand dirhams and not more than 15 thousand dirhams, and that the applicant must have a bachelor’s degree as a minimum accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, in addition to the presence of at least two children with the beneficiary, or that a period of no less than 5 years has passed since the marriage, and that the husband be a citizen working in the private or government sector, with applications accepted if the husband is retired or unable to work for health reasons according to reports. Certified. Medical personnel who hold medical degrees, educational personnel who are teachers, and holders of doctoral degrees are excluded from the requirement of the number of children and duration of marriage, provided that they have been married for two years, provided that the certificate is accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and that it is issued by one of the 500 best universities in the world in the specialty, or that the applicant has practical experience in vital jobs in the labor market. The value of salary support within this program amounts to 3,000 dirhams per month.

Retirement funds
The “Nafes” program will continue to bear the retirement fund contributions for citizens working in the private sector registered under the “Eshtabak” program, while private sector employers will, starting in September 2026, bear their share of the contributions of citizens working for them and registered within the program.

It is worth noting that the “Nafis” program was launched in September 2021 with a budget of 24 billion dirhams for a period of five years, targeting the employment of 170,000 citizens in the private sector, within the framework of a program launched by the United Arab Emirates government within the second package of the “50 Projects”, aiming to support and strengthen the national economy and achieve a qualitative development shift in the UAE.