Schools in the UAE are considering plans to finish half an hour earlier on Fridays to accommodate a change to prayer times.
It was announced this week that Friday prayers in the UAE are to be brought forward from 1.15pm to 12.45pm from the beginning of 2026.
The National spoke to senior education figures at schools in Dubai who said they were in communication with the emirate's Knowledge and Human Development Authority. It has sent a questionnaire to schools asking for their thoughts about ending Friday lessons at 11.30am rather than 12pm.
The KHDA and Abu Dhabi's Department of Education and Knowledge said they had yet to receive updates about whether lessons would have to end 30 minutes earlier on Fridays from next year.
One senior education figure in Dubai said schools supported and understood the importance of prayer times.
"The main challenge is making changes mid-year when plans have been developed and timetables set," they said. "We will now have to review these and communicate with parents our intentions. Currently, the KHDA is asking schools about the Friday finish time moving from 12 noon to 11.30am."
They said changing lesson times on Fridays would require schools to review contracts with bus and catering companies, whiles some pupils may have less time to do their courses that previous classes.
"The pressure on parents is also great, especially if you want to have the time to pray on a Friday," they added. "Getting to and from schools with the current heavy traffic in Dubai is a challenge and this will make things even more difficult."
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
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Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
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Price, base / as tested: Dh263,235 / Dh420,000
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Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
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The Federal National Council is one of five federal authorities established by the UAE constitution. It held its first session on December 2, 1972, a year to the day after Federation.
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Since 2006, half of the members have been elected by UAE citizens to serve four-year terms and the other half are appointed by the Ruler’s Courts of the seven emirates.
In the 2015 elections, 78 of the 252 candidates were women. Women also represented 48 per cent of all voters and 67 per cent of the voters were under the age of 40.
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8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
