Department of Civil Service participates in NAJAH to promote UAE public sector career opportunities

The Department of Civil Service (DCS) is taking part for the first time in NAJAH, the most comprehensive education, training and careers exhibition to be held in the UAE, to highlight career opportunities in the public sector.

DCS is the strategic human resource management partner to Abu Dhabi Government Departments, implementing strategies, raising awareness and providing information for public sector job seekers.

While DCS already collaborates with Government departments, partnering with Abu Dhabi Emiratisation Council as well as Abu Dhabi University, in the area of career development, it has decided to participate at NAJAH in order to target both the high number of promising young job-seekers who are planning to attend the event, as well as the talented professionals who are already out there and who need to be alerted to the potential of careers in the public sector.

NAJAH, under the patronage of HH Sheikh Nahyan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, UAE Minister for Higher Education and Scientific Research, and supported by the Ministry of Education and the Abu Dhabi Education Council, is an ideal platform for DCS to expand its constituency.

In 2007, the inaugural NAJAH event attracted scores of talented university graduates and professionals, and high levels are expected to return for this year’s edition at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre from 19-21 October 2008.

Building on the success of 2007, NAJAH will be of major interest to public and private sector organisations and educational institutions seeking to make direct contact with school leavers, graduates, parents, job seekers, those seeking education opportunities abroad or professional advancement and HR professionals.

The exhibition is expected to attract scores of young talent and professionals who can take advantage of the job profiling area. This allows visitors to complete an online survey which matches personalities and skills and their suitability for potential careers.

Fully qualified careers counsellors will be on hand to provide guidance, while there are also a number of seminar sessions allowing exhibitors even more access to visitors to discuss the opportunities and courses available within their organisations.

The Department’s Career Development Programme specifically addresses recent changes in the public sector labour market, with the restructuring, integration, or privatisation of various government activities and services.

UAE nationals now face increased competition for fewer public sector posts, as a number of positions have either been lost or outsourced following the restructuring of Government Departments.

With these employment issues in mind, DCS established its Career Development Programme to help displaced former Government employees retrain and to highlight their availability for future employment to both public and private sectors.

"The Programme was established by the DCS following the major Government restructuring, which resulted in a number of Emirati civil servants losing their roles as a result of the changing public sector environment," said Faisal Al Shamsi, Manager of Human Resources and Administration Division, DCS.

"We established the Career Development Programme, dedicated primarily to the retraining and ultimate redeployment of these talented individuals, many of them with considerable periods of Government service behind them, into new roles within the public and private sectors," he added.

"Najah is important for us in terms of reaching out to Emirati job seekers. Our commitment to students is one the DCS takes very seriously, as demonstrated by our Scholarship Programme and our links with organizations such as Abu Dhabi Women’s Colleges. NAJAH will enable us to build on and increase our established relationships with world-class educational partners to facilitate the provision of training and development for employees in the Abu Dhabi public sector," he continued.

"The DCS has identified an ideal opportunity in NAJAH to reach out to their target market," said Christine Weaver, Group Exhibition Director at IIR Middle East, the organisers of NAJAH. "DCS is striving to assist UAE national graduates and professionals to secure careers in the public sector and NAJAH provides a platform for job seekers and businesses alike to make a direct connect with each other."

"NAJAH will offer guidance and assistance to students, graduates, and professionals who want to advance their career opportunities. Visitors to the show will have the opportunity to meet leading HR management specialists from the UAE and around the world," she added.

To find out more about exhibiting or visiting NAJAH, visit www.najah-online.com.

- Lindsay Johnston, Total Communications Dubai - also photo