DUBAI: More Emiratis needed to be encouraged to work in the UAE’s health care and medical professions, a leading health education specialist has said.
Speaking to Arab News at an international conference on medical education, Professor Mohammed Al-Houqani, assistant dean for education and academic affairs at United Arab Emirates University, said that only 5 percent of Emiratis now worked in health care.
“We see more local girls opting for medical education. Boys still prefers business studies or other professions where one can finish education faster and start earning in good numbers,” he said.
The four-day International Conference on Medical Education (ICME) concluded at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Center. During the summit, more than 1,000 medical education experts from 56 countries discussed applying international training standards in the UAE.
Professor Al-Houqani said the six medical schools in the country were sufficient to fulfil current requirements.
Hassan Mohammed Khan, chancellor of Riphah International University and founder of ICME, said the quality of medical education is directly related to health care and patient safety in any country.
“Medical education is evolving every day, and the only way to keep oneself up to date is through academic and professional interaction. In medicine, excellence is a journey and not an end. It is a lifelong pursuit,” he said.
Medical education is expensive across the world, Khan said.
“America and the UK are one of the most expensive places to get a degree in education. It is costly because lots of investment goes into research and equipment.”
Referring to the numbers of UAE medical students, Khan said local students made up 10 percent of the intake at his own medical college in Ras Al-Khaimah.
“The numbers of local students are increasing. However, considering the demographic dynamics, the present numbers are not bad,” said Khan, who is head of the RAK College of Dental Sciences in the UAE.
“We need good professionals, no matter which nationality they belong to,” he said.
Khan, who also runs academic institutions in Pakistan, said the two countries had a great opportunity to collaborate on medical education.
“Unfortunately, on an individual level, so many Pakistani doctors and medical managers are working in UAE. But at an institution level, there is no formal cooperation.”
The conference, a joint collaboration of Ottawa Conference and International Conference on Medical Education, was endorsed by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, and supported by the UAE University, Gulf Medical University, RAK Medical and Health Sciences University, The University of Sharjah and CLIQ (Center of Excellence in Leadership and Quality) at RAKCODS, the Abu Dhabi Convention Bureau, Emirates Medical Association and the Emirates Nursing Association.
Make medicine your life, expert urges young Emiratis
Make medicine your life, expert urges young Emiratis
Pakistan transporters call off five-day strike after successful talks with Punjab government
- Transporters went on strike against heavy fines, penalties imposed by Punjab over traffic violations
- Punjab government sets up committee to resolve transporters issues, confirms provincial minister
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani goods transporters called off their five-day-long nationwide strike on Friday after successful talks with the Punjab government, officials and transporters confirmed, as the business community warned of an impending economic crisis if the dispute stayed unresolved.
Transporters went on a nationwide strike on Dec. 8 against stringent traffic rules and heavy fines imposed by the Punjab government over traffic violations. These penalties were included in the Motor Vehicle Ordinance 2025 last month.
The ordinance details hefty fines ranging from Rs2000 [$7] to Rs50,000 [$178] and mentions prison sentences going up to six months for various offenses committed by drivers, such as driving on the wrong side of the road or driving in vehicles with tinted windows.
“Yes, the strike has been called off after our meeting with Senior Minister of Punjab Marriyum Aurangzeb,” Nabeel Tariq, president of the All Pakistan Goods Transport Association (APGTA), told Arab News.
Tariq said fines ranging from Rs1000 ($3.6) to Rs1500 ($5.4) for traffic violations have been increased to around Rs20,000 ($71.3) as per the new rules.
He said the APGTA has agreed to accept a 100 percent or even 200 percent hike in fines. However, he said an increase of 2000 percent was not “logical.”
“Our urgent demands have been accepted and a committee has been formed to review the ordinance and come up with recommendations,” Tariq said.
Speaking to Arab News, Aurangzeb confirmed the strike had been called off after talks with the Punjab government and that a committee has been formed to resolve the transporters’ issues.
The committee will be headed by Aurangzeb and will include representatives of goods transporters, a statement issued by her office said.
“The government wants to protect human lives and make things better for all citizens,” the statement said. “We will resolve the issues (with transporters) amicably.”
‘UNPRECEDENTED CRISIS’
Pakistan’s business and industrial community, meanwhile, warned of an impending crisis if the disputed was not resolved.
The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) and the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) have both appealed for immediate government intervention.
Imdad Hussain Naqvi, president of the Grand Transport Alliance Pakistan (GTAP), told Arab News that over 400,000 goods carriers had been stranded across Pakistan due to the strike, affecting supplies to millions of consumers.
Earlier, in a letter to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, APTMA Chairman Kamran Arshad said the strike has “critically impacted import and export operations which are backbone of the country’s economy.”
He said hundreds of cargo vehicles remain stranded across Punjab, creating “abnormal delays” in goods movement and triggering heavy demurrage, detention charges, missed vessels and production shutdowns due to the non-availability of raw materials.
Arshad warned the disruption poses “a serious risk of order cancelation of export orders by international buyers, which would have far-reaching consequences for Pakistan’s foreign exchange earnings.”
Meanwhile in Pakistan’s commercial hub Karachi, KCCI President Rehan Hanif issued an even stronger warning, saying the nationwide strike threatens to paralyze Pakistan’s economic lifeline.
“The complete suspension of cargo movement is pushing Pakistan toward an unprecedented trade and industrial crisis,” Hanif said in a statement.
He added that import and export consignments are now stranded at the city’s ports, highways and industrial zones.
