Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has announced that it recruited 113 Emirati women in 2024, which accounts for over half of the 220 Emiratis brought on board by EGA throughout the year. As part of its broader Emiratization initiatives at Emirates Global Aluminium, the company has set a target for women to occupy 25 percent of supervisory roles by the close of this year and aims for 15 percent of all positions to be held by women by the end of 2026. At present, women represent 23.3 percent of supervisory roles and 9.6 percent of all positions within the organization.
Emiratization rates and achievements
As of the end of 2024, EGA’s focus on Emiratization achieved a rate of 44.3 percent. When compared on a like-for-like basis, EGA boasts one of the highest Emiratisation rates among major companies, particularly given the significant number of industrial roles involved.
Future goals for Emiratization
EGA is now working towards accelerating its Emiratization initiatives to reach a 50 percent focus by the end of 2027. This ambition entails the hiring of up to 600 UAE Nationals during this period. Among the 2024 recruits, 144 individuals, including 65 women, enrolled in EGA’s National Training programs, which are designed to equip high school graduates for technical and administrative positions within the company’s industrial sites and administrative divisions.
Graduate training program highlights
Additionally, the majority of university graduates who joined EGA’s established Graduate Training program in 2024 were women. Graduate trainees undergo an 18 or 24-month training period, preparing them for supervisory roles in corporate functions or industrial operations. For those in operations, this training includes hands-on experience in front-line operational roles, such as managing reduction cells.
Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, chief executive officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, remarked, “More than 71 percent of our 2024 UAE National recruits joined roles in EGA’s operations, driving forward our vision for excellence and our contribution to achieve the goals of UAE’s industrial strategy Operation 300bn. Our unwavering commitment to Emiratization enables us to capitalise on exceptional UAE National talent to maximise our growth and the economic development of our nation. Our ambitious Emiratization goals reflect our role as a leader in national talent development and innovation. We have exceeded our in-focus Emiratization goals for 2024 and are now aiming to reach a 50 percent in-focus Emiratization rate by 2027.”
Participation in national career events
In 2024, EGA took part in 14 national career events, which included significant job fairs and its own recruitment initiatives in collaboration with the Dubai Government Human Resources Department, the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, the Department of Government Enablement, and the HR Departments of the RAK and Fujairah Governments. Currently, over 1,300 UAE Nationals are employed at EGA, with more than half of them under the age of 35.
