Pursuing its goal to establish a generation of highly qualified Emirati technicians, Smart Dubai has launched its 'EDAAD’ training programme.
EDAAD aims to ready new Emirati graduates to work with the Smart Dubai office by matching the gold standard output of the country’s tertiary education facilities with the premium quality of its human resources sector.
Through EDAAD, Smart Dubai will train new graduates from various universities across the UAE, equipping them with the skills they need to engage effectively with Smart Dubai’s operations. The five-month programme aims to enhance the productivity levels of attendees and to provide them with the capacity to be innovative and creative.
His Excellency Wesam Lootah, CEO of the Smart Dubai Government Establishment, said: "Transforming Dubai into a smart city requires the creation of a cadre of national talent that possess the skills and abilities that suit the needs of the future and that meet our leadership’s vision for the UAE Centennial 2071. Human Resources is an essential foundation in this process and will enable Smart Dubai to play its key role in leading Dubai's transformation into the smartest and happiest city in the world.”
"Smart Dubai has set a global standard in its push to create a smart city, so it is vital that future generations of Emiratis who are keen to work within the smart city system gain sufficient skills and qualifications to deal with its technologies, which are designed to create a better life experience through such innovations as advanced e-services. With the rapid pace of development of these technologies, new graduates will be at the fore of developing and improving them. The launch of the Edad preparation programme will provide the necessary expertise for new graduates in the various areas of building smart cities,” he added.
Alia Al Muhairi, Human Resources Manager, said that the existing approach of preparing Emirati graduates before they engage in work within Smart Dubai has already contributed to the development of the team, adding that most of the new employees are actively creative from the moment they join the Smart Dubai office.
She explained that the launch of the EDAAD programme comes after the Smart Dubai Human Resources team noticed the need of new graduates to learn more about Smart Dubai’s approach and strategy and the exact nature of the work and the roles assigned to them. She pointed out that the members of the programme are new Emirati graduates who submitted to the office through the Dubai Careers application during UAE Careers Fair 2017.
EDAAD includes the training of graduate students on the most important international projects. It is divided into internal training, where a group of highly qualified Smart Dubai employees prepare the graduates, and external training, that sees international companies offering mentorship in their respective spheres of industry.
Areas covered include the basics of software development, knowledge of data structures and algorithms, project management and business analysis. The scheme has also been designed to teach ‘soft’ skills, such as interpersonal communication, presentation skills and teamwork. On completion of the programme after the fifth month, the students submit personal projects in the field of technology, based on the experiences and information they have gained throughout the course.
Ali Al-Darwish, a Computer Science Engineering graduate of Khalifa University, said: “The EDAAD programme has opened up new horizons for us as fresh graduates in the labour market and has contributed to our integrated qualification to work within the Smart Dubai Team. This is an important training tool for Dubai and one that will help the transformation of the emirate into a fully smart city.”
Hana Saud Abdullah, a Computer Science Engineering graduate from University of Sharjah, said: “As participants we were able to gain an extensive amount of experience in a relatively short period of time and we would like to thank Smart Dubai for providing this opportunity to us as new graduates. We have very much enjoyed being a part of the EDAAD programme, which is perfectly geared towards delivering on Smart Dubai’s incredible aspirations and ambitions.”
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