Expat professionals hold long-term plans in UAE

Expat professional in the UAE have long-term plans for the country and want to live here for as long as possible, according to a poll by 'Emirates24|7'.

UAE seems to be the preferred work destination for most as majority (54 per cent) of the participants said they plan to live in the country for as long as they can. On the other hand, 16 per cent of the respondents who participated in the online poll think between 5 to 10 years would be a good time frame for them to stay in the country.  Twenty two per cent said they wish to be here for two to five years, whereas, a minority (8 per cent) say they plan to live in the country for less than two years.

Konstantina Sakellariou, Partner, Marketing & Operations Director at Stanton Chase believes professionals in the UAE stay on for at least five years.

“In general, I don’t see people who’ve not been here for at least 5-6 years. People who come here only for two to three years are not a majority at the moment. Executives prefer to stay for a longer period and invest in their career here.  The increased maturity of the market after the downturn, as well as the ongoing international crisis has made the UAE an attractive market for executives,” she told this website.

According to Lama Ataya, Chief Marketing Officer at Bayt.com, “the UAE remains very much a favourite work destination, attracting top talent from across the region and the globe.”

Quoting her company’s latest research survey, Best Cities of the Middle East and North Africa 2010 “that analysed the top cities in the MENA according to economic factors, labour rights, environmental factors, everyday life factors and socio-cultural factors, Abu Dhabi ranked first, Dubai third and Sharjah sixth among the top 10 cities taking all factors into account.”

The Bayt.com expert added that many professionals also believe that the UAE job market is poised to show improvement, a factor that will determine the choice of many to stay on. “[Our] recent consumer confidence index survey showed that while 62 per cent of professionals working in the UAE believe salary increases are not keeping up with the cost of living, 49 per cent do believe that their financial position will improve in a year’s time and 51 per cent expect that the UAE’s economy will take a turn for the better within the same time period, with a majority also believing that this will bring around better business conditions and 34 per cent saying there will be more jobs available,” she elaborated.

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