Social Welfare

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Recognizing that even in a prosperous country such as the UAE there will always be vulnerable members of society who need assistance, the Government has instituted a comprehensive social welfare system operated by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The Ministry also makes specific allocations to the country's women's organizations to ensure that all those in need, particularly women in rural areas, have access both to an economic safety net and to assistance in adapting to a fast-changing world. Social welfare assistance is extended in accordance with the Social Security Law which came into effect in 1977. According to official statistics the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs spent Dh 5,860 million on social welfare from 1986 to 1997. The total cost in 1997 was Dh 660 million. Of the families receiving social assistance, 25 per cent were in Abu Dhabi, 23 per cent in Dubai, 21 per cent in Sharjah, 7 per cent in Fujairah, 5 per cent in Ajman and 3 per cent in Umm al-Qaiwain. Among those who benefited fro m the assistance the elderly we re the largest group re p resenting 43 per cent of the total. They were followed by widows, divorcees, the deserted, the unmarried, expatriate wives, orphans, families of prisoners and married students. Today almost 40,000 nationals benefit from social security and nearly 9,000 receive pensions totaling Dh 720 million annually.

In July 1999 the Federal National Council approved new legislation regulating social security benefits. Under the new law people entitled to monthly social benefits include national widows and divorced women, the disabled and handicapped, the elderly, orphans, single daughters, married students, relatives of a jailed dependent, estranged wives and insolvents. Under the law all widowed and divorced national women who were married to foreigners are also eligible for social security benefits. The Social Security Committee may also consider an application from a national woman whose foreign husband is unable to earn a living for reasons beyond his control or if his income is less than that needed to run the home (Dh 5,000).

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