American companies are creating a framework for future jobs, which is a new area of cooperation between the US and the UAE, a senior executive of an American business body told Emirates News Agency (WAM)…writes Binsal Abdulkader
“We’re actually creating a curriculum in American companies for jobs that don’t exist. So, the US and the UAE are having a lot of discussions about how you educate a young population for a job that we don’t even know that we need for a job that doesn’t exist!” said Liz Beneski, Chief Executive Director of AmCham Abu Dhabi, which is the American Business Group of Abu Dhabi, a member of the global network of American Chambers of Commerce.
US businesses, new trends She believes that there is a great deal of free thinking on this new trend, which offers a new opportunity. Beneski made these comments while talking about the new trends among the US businesses in the UAE.
Many of them are operating in new and emerging sectors such as fintech, agriculture technology, education technology, medical technology and e-mobility. There are major players in the cybersecurity and space sectors as well, she explained.
“There are other important industries that are being born here and elsewhere. COVID-19 has changed how everyone works, so there is a rebirth in the wellness and the happiness of staff, employees and colleagues. There’s a focus again on education,” she said, adding that all age groups need to upskill and learn new technologies to cope with the changing trends.
American technologies will support that trend as US companies are creating a domain for such future opportunities, the American executive affirmed.
“I would say, as the UAE loves to say the impossible is possible, we have to invent new industries for issues and opportunities that are currently coming to the fore; American technology is certainly complementary to all the discoveries and opportunities here in the UAE.”
AmCham’s 35 years Formed 35 years ago by a group of American businesspersons, AmCham Abu Dhabi currently has over 400 businesspersons as members and represents industry sectors such as energy, oil and gas, renewables, healthcare, defence, aerospace, cybersecurity, project management, education, technology, finance and fintech.
About 20 percent of the members are women and many of them serve in the C-suite level.
“Our mission is very simple; Amcham Abu Dhabi fosters the bilateral trade relationship between the United States and the UAE. And we do that fostering of trade through, firstly relationship building. Relationships are so key to the American way of doing business and luckily that aligns beautifully with the Emirati way of doing business – relationship first and transaction second,” she said.
US-UAE business ties The UAE could be the only country in the entire world that does business with all 50 states of the US, she pointed out. No other country does business with the smallest state – Rhode Island – and the largest states such as Texas and California as well, “which is amazing,” Beneski said.
“The UAE brings jobs to Americans by buying American goods. The UAE one of the top investors in the US.”
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A few thousand Emirati students are studying in the US and “I wish it was 50,000. This is the 50th year [of the UAE’s founding] and would love to see 50,000 Emirati students in America. That friendship that bond between the United States and the UAE is something to be celebrated, but more importantly to be treasured. It does start with trade.”
The AmCham CED believes “it is really exciting time ahead in the US-UAE economic relations. I do believe the continued investment of the wealth funds such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Mubadala is exciting for the United States. They’re buying hotels or educational institutions or making generous donations to children’s hospitals or schools, which help the youth of America,” Beneski said.