• Group’s efforts include strategic collaborations and wealth of ongoing initiatives
  • 791 Emiratis integrated into diverse roles with a third with university background

 Dubai, UAE: GEMS Education, the largest and longest-running private K-12 education provider in the UAE, has successfully met all its Emiratisation targets, reflecting the group’s award-winning commitment to fostering local talent and marking a significant milestone in its firm support of the UAE’s vision for sustainable development and economic diversification.

GEMS has successfully integrated a total of 791 Emiratis into various roles across its organisation, with around a third of these holding a bachelor’s degree.

Positions filled include teachers and assistant teachers, as well as roles in finance, government relations, information technology, inclusion, visual arts, curriculum design, counselling, human resources, nursing, school libraries, administration, and front of house.

Dino Varkey, Group Chief Executive Officer, GEMS Education, said: “All 42 of our schools in the UAE have made tremendous efforts in meeting our Emiratisation goals by promoting the array of employment opportunities available and implementing professional development initiatives.

“We look forward to welcoming yet more talented Emirati staff as we help advance the UAE’s vision of enhancing national human capital, developing a robust knowledge economy, and promoting economic growth.”

Fatima Alshamsi, Head of Emiratisation, GEMS Education, said: “Our goal is to attract highly skilled Emiratis, train them, place them in suitable roles, and ensure their continuous growth as part of our professional development programme.

“We also seek to empower fresh graduates to build a career in the education sector. We follow a holistic learning and professional development approach, which is fundamental to attracting, retaining, and ensuring career advancement for top Emirati talents.”

GEMS maintains ongoing collaborations with the MOHRE, the Ministry of Education, Dubai’s Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR), and the Emirati Human Resources Competitiveness Council (NAFIS).

GEMS has collaborated with Zayed University, Wasl University, and Sharjah Education Academy. It has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) to establish a strategic partnership covering its schools across all emirates.

In addition, GEMS has participated in 34 career fairs and held five Emiratisation open days for direct recruitment and hires, while also providing training, internships, and workshops for Emirati candidates.

Trainees have benefited from personalised coaching and mentoring sessions around key teaching and learning practices and strategies, including the Ministry of Education curriculum standards and regulatory requirements, UAE schools’ inspection framework, school assessment policy, and evidence-based teaching.

Trainees have also had the opportunity to observe experienced teachers within their subject areas, practise diverse teaching and co-teaching methods in the classrooms, and engage in action planning for professional growth.

Last month, GEMS Modern Academy was presented with the prestigious NAFIS Award for Education in acknowledgment of its outstanding support of the Emirati Talent Competitiveness Council.

In October 2023, the GEMS group launched an Emiratisation drive designed to promote the national workforce across its network of schools and ancillary services in the UAE. The programme supports the UAE Government’s efforts to drive and promote Emiratisation within skilled jobs in the private sector, as well as the Emirati Human Resources Competitiveness Council’s NAFIS programmes and incentives to support Emiratisation.

About GEMS Education 

GEMS Education is one of the oldest and largest K-12 private education providers in the world and a trusted and highly regarded choice for quality education in the Middle East and North Africa region. As a company founded in the UAE in 1959, it holds an unparalleled track record of providing diverse curricula and educational choices to all socio-economic means.

Having started with a single school run from a private home in Dubai, GEMS remains a family business to this day. Its inspiring Founder, Sunny Varkey, and his son, Dino Varkey, who is Group Chief Executive Officer, are responsible for providing vision, insight, and strategy across the organisation.

Every day, GEMS has the privilege of educating students from over 176 countries through its owned and managed schools globally. And through its growing network, as well as charitable contributions, it is fulfilling the GEMS vision of putting a quality education within the reach of every learner.

Every year, students graduating from GEMS schools progress to the world’s best universities. Over the past five years, GEMS students have been accepted into over 1,050 universities in 53 countries including all eight Ivy League universities in the US and all 24 Russell Group universities and colleges in the UK.

For further information about GEMS Education, visit www.gemseducation.com or contact:
Razan Abusabha, Account director, Four
Razan.Abusabha@four.agency
Tel: (+971) 4 568 3444
Mob: (+971) 58 850 6258