The United Arab Emirates (UAE) will adopt a new corporate law, possibly before December, allowing enterprises to hire more than 49 percent of foreign staff, Minister of Economy Sultan Al Mansouri said Monday.

 

 

 The proposed law, which no longer demands that firms outside the free zones hire at least 51 percent of local Emirati employees, will come into effect by the end of this year, Xinhua reported quoting the minister as saying at a conference on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and innovation.

 

 "I have done my job to finish this law," he said. "The implementation will be effective…and we should immediately implement it."

 

 According to the minister, SMEs generate around 60 percent of the gross domestic product of the UAE and 80 percent of the country's labour force work in SMEs.

 

 Al Mansouri added that the UAE economy is expected to grow by 4.5 percent this year. 

 

IANS