• Major-General Obaid bin Suroor: Incentives from the public and private sectors enhance Dubai's reputation as the best city to live and work in

Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council, the Taqdeer Award has announced the completion of the evaluation processes for companies and distinguished workers who won the Award in its fifth cycle for the year 2022.

The management of the award, the first of its kind in the world to honour distinguished workers and companies, revealed the number of companies able to reach the final stages to compete for winning the Award has reached 396 out of a total of more than 5,000 companies operating in various economic sectors, including contracting companies, factories, free zones, services, mechanical and other domains.

The management disclosed preparations are underway to organize a grand honouring ceremony wherein the names of distinguished winners - companies and workers- will be revealed. It will be held on November 29 at the Rashid Hall of the Dubai World Trade Centre, after its approval by the Award’s Judging Committee, which in turn submits it to His Highness for final approval.

Building better relationships between companies and workers

His Excellency Major-General Obaid Muhair Bin Suroor, Deputy Director-General of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA-Dubai) and Chairman of the Taqdeer Award, said the Award has raised the number of strategic partnerships with the government agencies in the emirate to 13 compared to four earlier and the number of incentives has risen to 60 compared to 32 in the previous session. In addition to granting more than 160,000 blue-collar workers special discount cards that provide them with the opportunity to save millions of dirhams annually through special discounts offered by more than 70 establishments in Dubai.

The senior Emirati official added: "The award has come a long way in promoting and building the best relations between the employers and workers, guaranteeing the rights of both parties towards each other, and raising the levels of happiness and job loyalty and performance to an unprecedented level, all enhancing Dubai's reputation as the best city to live and work."

His Excellency praised the support of government agencies in Dubai through their incentives to distinguished companies and workers. He also praised the support provided by sponsors from the private sector which enabled the Award to go places in its current session.

A rating system that is unique in the world

Lieutenant-Colonel Khaled Ismail, Secretary-General of the Taqdeer Award, said the evaluation system of the Award is the first of its kind in the world that relies on the methodology of Artificial Intelligence not only in terms of evaluation processes but also in terms of retrieving information and giving evaluation reports to companies and their performance levels at the click of a button.

The Secretary-General added: "The honouring ceremony will be unique in every sense of the word and will reflect the volume of appreciation offered by the Award to encourage companies and workers to achieve more distinction on the way to building the best relations between the two parties."

Strategic partnerships with 13 government agencies

The Award concluded strategic partnerships with 13 government agencies: the Roads and Transport Authority, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority, Dubai Municipality, General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs, Dubai Health Authority, Community Development Authority, Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority, Dubai Customs, Department of Economy and Tourism, Dubai Chambers, Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services, and Dubai Civil Defense Corporation.

A private sector that contributes to achieving the Award’s vision

The private sector organisations in Dubai which had contributed by supporting the Award in its fifth cycle for the year 2022 were: Nia Limited and Al Shomoukh Group (Diamond Sponsors), MANSORY and FedEx (Platinum Sponsors), flydubai, emaratech and Aster DM Healthcare Group (Gold Sponsors) and Emirates NBD and Banque Misr (Silver Sponsors). Tomini Group, Chalhoub Group, Seabubbles, Gulf Drug LLC, General Mills, CFI Financial, Stanley Black & Decker, Kone Middle East, Mohamed & Obaid Al Mulla LLC, Kaloti Precious Metal, Pallapay, and Al Safadi Restaurant chipped in support as co-sponsors.

What they said about the Award

Kamran Birjees Khan, Chief Executive Office of NIA Limited, said: “Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Taqdeer Award ensures and improves the well-being of employers and employees alike. We are greatly honoured to contribute back to the community and support this noble initiative. We are proud to be part of Taqdeer Award as the Diamond sponsor.”

He added: “The Government of Dubai has set a high benchmark and has become a global leader in setting new standards for working conditions. Our own business philosophy as Nia - ‘People first’ coincide with the very premise of Taqdeer Award. This point-based system will help a lot of companies to look inside and assess how they are contributing to enhancing the quality of life, and working conditioning of our co-workers towards the progress and growth of this beautiful country - UAE.”

Kourosh Mansory, Founder and CEO of MANSORY said: “MANSORY has started its business with its own premises in Dubai for the first time in 2021 and therefore takes the first possible opportunity to sponsor this prestigious award. Every company stands or falls on the quality of its employees and how they are treated. We believe that the Taqdeer Award will spur us in many ways to further improve and optimize the way we treat our employees for the benefit of all.”

Dr Azad Moopen, Founder-Chairman and Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare said: “Aster DM Healthcare stands aligned with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum – Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council, to keep UAE firmly established as a humanitarian centre on the world stage. One of the most important requirement for this is to provide the best working and living conditions for the workforce across sectors in accordance with the global benchmarks.”

He added: “We are glad that an initiative like Taqdeer Award was established to recognize companies which uphold the world-class standards regarding employee benefits and encourage others to follow the same. Aster considers it a privilege  to associate and support the Taqdeer Award, to reiterate our commitment to the Visionary Rulers and people of UAE and the large expat workforce in the country including our own employees.”

“We are happy to be supporting the Taqdeer Award which is in line with our commitment to maintain a positive, diverse and inclusive work environment that values the welfare of all team members. At FedEx, our “People-Service-Profit” philosophy is the cornerstone of everything we do -- it is about establishing a culture that is respectful and rewarding for employees who then deliver exceptional service to customers. Delighted customers, in turn, reward the company with their business and loyalty, creating a profitable enterprise that provides job satisfaction for its people.”

“Dubai has been home to the most progressive employers in the Middle East. We appreciate the Government of Dubai and Taqdeer’s commitment to supporting employers and their workforce to ensure that the highest standards are maintained in accordance with global standards and best practices,” said Taarek Hinedi, vice president of FedEx Express Middle East and Africa operations.

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