Hundreds of job offers made over the three-day event

Design Lab and Next Founder competitions pick winning students

Ru‎’ya Careers UAE 2025 date announced with bigger footprint

30 September 2024 – Dubai, UAE: The 23rd edition of Ru'ya Careers UAE has successfully wrapped up at the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). Over the past three days, thousands of job seekers engaged with leading local and international organisations, resulting in hundreds of job offers being extended and interviews taking place on-site, from a confirmed 3,000 vacancies.

The event's final day saw a busy atmosphere as thousands of young Emiratis networked with potential employers, and leading employers including ABB, BCG, Deloitte, DP World, Emirates NBD, and Galadari Brothers conducted 15-minute interviews through the Get Hired! activation.

Eng. Amer Khansaheb, Chief Executive Officer and Board Member at Union Properties PJSC, said: “Our participation at Ru’ya Careers 2024 reflects our steadfast dedication to the UAE’s Emiratisation strategy. This event provides an excellent opportunity to engage with UAE nationals who are focused on becoming future leaders. At ‘Union Properties’, Emiratis currently hold more than 25 per cent of our senior management roles, demonstrating our commitment to supporting the country’s strategic objectives as well as its vision for a dynamic and diverse leadership landscape and driving transformative growth through the development of local talent. Looking forward, we are committed to supporting the government’s efforts to enhance Emirati representation in the private sector, a crucial driver of the nation's economic progress.”

Khaled Bin Braik, Consulting Partner and Emiratisation Programme Leader at PwC Middle East added: “The UAE is dedicated to empowering national talent, and at PwC, we’re committed to supporting this vision by actively participating in employment fairs to attract top GCC talent.”

He added: “We’re excited to be at this year's career fair to connect with skilled Emirati talent. Our ‘Watani’ programme aims to develop future leaders, and today, we’re proud to have over 1,200 GCC nationals, including 242 Emiratis, across our 14 GCC offices. We've trained over 8,000 Emiratis and will continue investing in upskilling national talent.”

The final day saw the culmination of the ‘Design Lab’ competition, a new-to-show feature supported by Emirati-founded drinks company Frio, which gave students the chance to design a new label for Frio’s cans and create a refreshing new flavour. First place winner was from Dubai National School – Al Barsha.

Over the past three days, students were also put through their paces in the Next Founder competition, a bootcamp, supported by the Ministry of Education, aimed at encouraging the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs. Individuals and teams submitted their ideas around the theme of sustainable technology, with the best submissions invited to take part the onsite bootcamp. Having received guidance on their business plans, teams and individuals pitched to a panel of experts. The five most compelling pitches each received a cash prize to help make their ideas a reality, with Dubai National School – Al Twar taking first place.

The UAE’s foremost recruitment, skills development and networking forum for Emiratis provided a platform to inspire young people to take their next professional steps and network with over 150 prospective employers from leading organisations, including Platinum Sponsor First Abu Dhabi, Gold Sponsor Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB), and Support Sponsors Air Arabia and United Arab Bank.

Speaking at the conclusion of the event, Asma Alsharif, AVP, Sustainable Development, Exhibitions, Dubai World Trade Centre, said: “At this year’s Ru'ya Careers UAE, we have been delighted to once again welcome thousands of aspirational young Emiratis. By connecting them with many of the country’s leading employers, Ru’ya continues to support the Emiratisation efforts of these businesses and bolster the vision of the nation’s wise leadership. Ru’ya also expanded into new sectors this year, including construction, facilities management, media and marketing, e-commerce, and chemicals, and we are delighted by the overwhelmingly positive feedback from new-to-show exhibitors. We’d like to say a huge thank you to all our exhibiting partners, and hope that all our visitors left feeling inspired to take the next steps towards their dream careers.”

Ru’ya Careers will return to Dubai World Trade Centre from 23-25 September 2025, expanding to cover Halls 1 to 4 and Zabeel Hall 3.