Federal government departments will allow 70 per cent of their staff to work from home on Fridays during Ramadan, President Sheikh Mohamed has said.
The remaining 30 per cent of personnel should be in offices on those days.
Pupils and students at government-run schools and universities will also be allowed to study from home on Fridays, if exam timetables allow for it.
The announcement came from the UAE government media office.
"His Highness the President of the State directed that the official working hours for federal government employees during the month of Ramadan be 70 per cent remotely, and 30 per cent attendance on Fridays, and that remote working hours for students in universities and public schools be during Fridays, taking into account the dates of pre-determined physical exams," it said.
Rules for private schools were not mentioned in the statement.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, announced the same remote working hours for Dubai.
"The Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR) said working hours during Ramadan will be 9am to 2:30pm Monday -Thursday; and 9am to 12pm on Fridays, except for employees whose work requires them to be on a separate shift schedule," a statement from Dubai Media Office said.
"The DGHR also said Dubai Government entities can continue offering flexible hours during Ramadan as per prevailing laws and approved working hours. The DGHR encouraged government entities to allow 70 per cent of their staff to work remotely on Fridays during the Holy Month."
The decision comes two days after Ramadan working hours for the private sector were announced and five days after federal hours.
Ramadan working hours for government workers will start at 9am and end at 2.30pm, from Monday to Thursday, and from 9am until noon on Fridays.
Ministries and federal departments will be allowed to introduce flexible-working or remote-work schedules, state news agency Wam reported.
Ramadan will begin in the UAE on March 23, after the Moon-sighting committee met at the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department following maghrib (sunset) prayers on Tuesday and announced it could not yet see a new crescent moon, meaning Ramadan would begin on Thursday, state news agency Wam reported.
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MATCH INFO
World Cup 2022 qualifier
UAE v Indonesia, Thursday, 8pm
Venue: Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
Mobile phone packages comparison
RESULT
Deportivo La Coruna 2 Barcelona 4
Deportivo: Perez (39'), Colak (63')
Barcelona: Coutinho (6'), Messi (37', 81', 84')
Company name: Farmin
Date started: March 2019
Founder: Dr Ali Al Hammadi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: AgriTech
Initial investment: None to date
Partners/Incubators: UAE Space Agency/Krypto Labs
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
JAPANESE GRAND PRIX INFO
Schedule (All times UAE)
First practice: Friday, 5-6.30am
Second practice: Friday, 9-10.30am
Third practice: Saturday, 7-8am
Qualifying: Saturday, 10-11am
Race: Sunday, 9am-midday
Race venue: Suzuka International Racing Course
Circuit Length: 5.807km
Number of Laps: 53
Watch live: beIN Sports HD
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
THE SPECS
Engine: AMG-enhanced 3.0L inline-6 turbo with EQ Boost and electric auxiliary compressor
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 429hp
Torque: 520Nm
Price: Dh360,200 (starting)
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Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
