Abu Dhabi Health Department Says Tawteen Attracted Over 1,200 National Health Care Professionals In 6 Months

In the wake of Emiratization across the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Department of Health – Abu Dhabi (DOH) announced on Tuesday that the local target called Tawteen helped bring more than 1,200 national health care professionals into the sector within six months.

The milestone was reached after the department introduced Tawteen targets in the health sector in mid-2023, and the results provided new job opportunities for UAE nationals across all health care facilities operating in Abu Dhabi.

Abu Dhabi Mansour Ibrahim Al Mansouri, chairman of the DOH, gave credit to Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, crown prince of Abu Dhabi and chairman of Abu Dhabi Executive Council, for the latter's guidance and support, adding that this milestone "reflects our continuous efforts to support the Tawteen targets in the health care sector to retain qualified national medical professionals, further cementing Abu Dhabi's position as a leading global healthcare destination."

"By surpassing our 2023 targets, we are helping create a sustainable healthcare sector, driven by a skilled and specialized national workforce. We are looking forward to more important milestones that allow us to build a healthier Abu Dhabi," Al Mansouri added, according to WAM.

Ghannam Al Mazrouei, secretary general of the Emirati Talent Competitiveness Council (ETCC), noted that Emiratization in the health sector is one of the priorities of the UAE.

"The Cabinet resolution allocates a specialized program within the Nafis Program, known as the National Healthcare Program. This program aims to qualify ten thousand Emiratis within five years through academic and training programs in medical and healthcare selective specialties," he said.

Al Mazrouei mentioned a resolution issued by Al Nahyan to form an Emiratization committee, which will be chaired by the Minister of Health Prevention and include membership from several health care-related entities including the DOH.

In the last couple of years, the UAE has been focusing on Emiratization in the country.

Earlier this year, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratization (MoHRE) started the implementation of the cabinet decision on more than over 12,000 companies with 20 to 49 employees to meet Emiratization targets. Failure to meet the required targets will result in a fine of AED96,000 for each UAE citizen not appointed in 2024, which will be collected in January 2025. Further, a fine of AED108,000 will be imposed on those who will not be able to meet 2025 targets, to be collected in January 2026.