10. Emiratization Progress and Challenges

As shown in the previous chapters, in the early years of nationalization, imported labor provided the skilled and unskilled labor needed to grow and prosper. Expatriate workers were attracted from their own countries by the salaries and working conditions offered in the UAE which were perceived as preferable to salaries and working conditions in their home countries. Expatriate workers remit substantial portions of their salaries to their own countries, thereby, removing the funds from the UAE local economy while supplementing the economic activities of their home countries. Expatriate workers are often provided in-kind supplements to salary that effectively reduce their cost of living including but not limited to free transport by company transport vehicle, free or low cost food prepared by company food service entities, free or low cost accommodation, reduced prices for retail products such as clothing, beauty products, or services that are provided by the employer to customers for sale. In the past half century, the basic infrastructure of the county has been established, two full generations have passed through secondary school in the educational system with more than a third progressing on to tertiary education, health care is available to all citizens, and the standard of living is among the highest in the world. Yet to achieve sustainable growth, the UAE must assure that young Emirati adults be able to find jobs that support the cost of living as it has evolved.