UAE Magnet for Migrants

The latest census figures for the UAE have been released, showing that nationals (i.e. Emiratis) now make up only 15 per cent of the population: 866,779 out of a total of 5.6 million. A full 75 per cent of the workforce is Asian, the majority of them Indians, who now make up over 40 per cent of the total population, and are thereby by far the largest ethnic group. No wonder Dubai often gives the impression of being an Indian city, minus the cows!

The UAE’s oil-fuelled wealth — now substantially supplemented by all sorts of activities, from property to finance and the media, following economic diversification — has acted as a magnet to workers from all over the world. The census says there are people here from 200 countries — which means all the member states of the United Nations and a few more besides. London often claims to be the most cosmopolitan city on earth, but there, Brits are still in a majority!

Many expats — Asian and others — have decided to make UAE their home, though they do not enjoy citizenship rights, which means that if the economy ever went pear-shaped, the government would be able to expel many foreign workers by not renewing their visas. Not that there seems any immediate likelihood of that just at present. With oil around $100 a barrel and skyscrapers popping up everywhere, the mood is boom boom boom.