The UAE, a powerful country in the Middle East, announced on Sunday that it will provide a package of benefits and subsidies totaling up to 24 billion dirhams (about 6.5 billion US dollars) to encourage residents to work in the private sector and reduce the unemployment rate, which has risen sharply due to the pandemic.

Like many Middle Eastern oil producers, in the UAE, a government job is the first choice for job seekers. Many college graduates have declined employment from private companies and waited for government positions with better pay, benefits, and working hours. Currently, millions of foreigners from all over the world fill most of the positions in the private sector.

Measures announced by the UAE government on Sunday include a monthly allowance of at least 800 dirhams per child for private sector employees, and up to four times the monthly allowance for each child for those earning less than 20,000 dirhams a month. This will help close the gap between the public and private sectors, and the government plans to recruit 75,000 citizens to work in the private sector over the next five years.

Other incentives include paid training programs, 5 years of additional income, and bonuses for people in important occupations such as nursing and computer programming.

According to the World Bank's latest estimates, the UAE's unemployment rate rose to 5% in 2020 from 2.2% a year ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic.