The United Arab Emirates is poised to expand its workforce by more than one million jobs by the end of this decade, driven significantly by the burgeoning technology sector.
The Workforce Skills Forecast 2025, released jointly by ServiceNow and Pearson, highlights that by 2030, the UAE anticipates adding 1.03 million new positions, marking a 12.1 per cent rise in employment.
This growth rate positions the UAE labour market ahead of major global economies such as the United States and the United Kingdom.
A key factor in this expansion is the increased demand for skills associated with digital transformation, which is fuelling job growth across multiple sectors.
Manufacturing is expected to lead with 133,000 new roles, followed by education with 78,000, and retail with 60,000. The finance and healthcare sectors are set to contribute over 40,000 and 39,000 jobs respectively.
Despite the rising presence of artificial intelligence, particularly in financial services where developmental AI could perform tasks equivalent to around 17,000 full-time roles, the demand for human labour is not expected to diminish.
The report underscores that AI adoption will complement rather than replace human workers, with an emphasis on the necessity for companies to invest in upskilling their workforce.
The tech industry is at the forefront of this employment surge, predicted to rise by 26 per cent, with technology-driven roles anticipated to expand by 54 per cent by 2030.
As of now, tech roles constitute about 169,000 positions within the UAE’s 8.5 million strong workforce.
By 2030, it is estimated that over 91,000 additional technology professionals will be needed, with roles for search marketing strategists, computer programmers, and systems analysts seeing substantial growth.
This robust increase reflects not only the UAE’s economic aspirations but also its commitment to evolving in the global tech landscape.
