Department of Community Development - Abu Dhabi Launches Emirati Family Growth Support Programme

The Department of Community Development - Abu Dhabi, the regulatory body of the social sector in the emirate, has launched its programme to support the growth of the Emirati family, which was approved by the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, headed by His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council.

The programme includes six initiatives to support UAE Nationals to marry and raise children, build and grow families, and contribute to family and societal cohesion. The Emirati Family Growth Support Programme aligns with Abu Dhabi’s strategy for enhancing family quality of life, with goals extending to 2028. The initiative focuses on the growth and stability of Emirati families, recognising them as the primary drivers of development and prosperity in the country.

DCD supervises the Emirati Family Growth Support Programme, with initiatives implemented by several partners, including the Abu Dhabi Social Support Authority, the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority, and the Abu Dhabi Housing Authority. The programme includes multiple initiatives designed to encourage citizens to marry, have children, build stable families, support family growth, and enhance the role of parents in raising and nurturing their children. Through these efforts, DCD aims to strengthen family cohesion and create a most prosperous society.

The programme includes the facilitated Marriage Loan Initiative, the Maternity Leave Support for Women Working in Private Sector initiative, and the Home Visit Service Initiative to support new mothers. It also includes Rental Assistance for Newlyweds to provide temporary housing for newly married couples, the Extending Housing Loan Repayment Period initiative to exempt a percentage of the housing loan amount for each additional child born in the family, starting from the fourth child to the sixth, within specific criteria and conditions, as well as the Loan Partial Deduction initiative, if the beneficiary has four or more children.

His Excellency Dr. Mugheer Al Khaili, Chairman of the Department of Community Development, said: “Our wise leadership is dedicated to providing decent standards of living for all individuals, Emirati families in particular, and spares no effort to enhance the quality of life for citizens and residents. This reflects our leadership’s belief in the importance of human beings as the country’s true wealth and the foundation for comprehensive and sustainable development.”

His Excellency Dr. Mugheer Al Khaili added: “The Emirati Family Growth Support Programme, which was approved by His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, comes within the umbrella of the Abu Dhabi Family Wellbeing Strategy launched by the Department of Community Development. This constitutes a significant leap forward in DCD’s efforts, alongside its partners, reflecting efforts to work as a single, unified team that ensures a decent life for all.”

His Excellency continued: “Abu Dhabi has always been a city that supports children, empowers young people, and is family friendly. From this standpoint, we affirm our commitment to supporting young people and those about to get married by providing a supportive system based on a belief in the importance of family in building society, enabling them to establish stable families. We are dedicated to supporting parents and helping them overcome the challenges they face in raising their children, as the family is the fundamental building block for creating a responsible society that continues the path of progress and preserves our national achievements.”

His Excellency Mohamed Ali Al Shorafa, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Abu Dhabi Housing Authority, said: “The Abu Dhabi Housing Authority works within an integrated system alongside the community sector entities affiliated with the Department of Community Development to implement the growth programme for Emirati Family, by providing a set of housing initiatives that will contribute to the programme’s objectives. This comes in line with the Authority’s continuous commitment to work in line with the directives of the leadership and in accordance with their aspirations aimed at achieving societal well-being and the Emirati family’s stability as they are integral aspects to the ongoing comprehensive development process witnessed in the emirate”.

His Excellency Hamad Ali Al Dhaheri, Undersecretary of the Department of Community Development, explained that the launch of the Emirati Family Growth Support Programme reflects DCD’s role in bolstering the progress of the Emirati family, increasing the population, and enhancing its stability in order to realise our leadership’s vision of a sustainable future for whole country. Therefore, the programme is part of DCD’s commitment to supporting the sustainability of Emirati society through family formation, growth and stability.

Al Dhaheri added: “The family is the nucleus of society and the basic building block for its stability and sustainability, and our children are the pride, foundation, and the true wealth of the nation. Therefore, we encourage newly married young Emiratis and families to grow their numbers, because they play a vital role in achieving social stability and preserving national identity.”

His Excellency stressed that strengthening the role of the family in society requires integrated efforts from all stakeholders. Thus, supportive initiatives will be provided within the framework of the programme, keeping in mind specific standards and conditions. This will have a positive impact in enhancing cooperation and solidarity between members of the Emirati community, who strive to achieve the UAE’s vision of building a strong and cohesive societyز

His Excellency Abdulla Al Ameri, Director General of Abu Dhabi Social Support Authority, said: “The UAE’s wise leadership is committed to supporting the growth of the Emirati family, recognising its vital role in the development of the nation. The Abu Dhabi government is actively developing initiatives and programmes to ensure a high standard of life and well-being for all citizens. As the entity responsible for regulating the social sector, the Department of Community Development is successfully establishing a comprehensive framework that enhances the quality of life for families, youth, and parents. These efforts emphasise the role of the family, recognising that strong and stable families are the foundation of our society and essential for sustainable development in Abu Dhabi emirate.”

“At SSA, we are proud to be involved in programmes which foster the development of Emirati families, support newly married couples, and extend maternity. These initiatives contribute to achieving the highest levels of social stability by supporting growth and strengthening family and community bonds amongst Emirati families. By helping newly married citizens to achieve a secure foundation, our aim is to encourage young people to build resilient families. We also recognise the vital role of motherhood within the family structure, and the importance of ensuring a harmonious balance between family and professional responsibilities. Such efforts not only enhance family cohesion and stability, but also contribute to the overall prosperity of society in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.”

His Excellency Hamad Hareb Al Muhairi, Director General of Abu Dhabi Housing Authority, said: “Through the rental assistance initiative, we seek to provide financial support to married citizens in a way that contributes to enhancing their stability at the beginning of their family life, in addition to encouraging the Emirati youth to marry and start their families by facilitating requirements related to housing needs as they are among the key factors that contribute to enabling individuals to start a family life. The other two initiatives which are to deduct an amount of money from the housing loan and the initiative to extend the repayment period for housing loans aim to reduce the financial burdens on citizens and encourage them to have children in a way that contributes to enhancing the growth of the Emirati family. He also stated that these services will be available next September.

Programme initiatives:

The Emirati Family Growth Support Programme provides support to citizens through various programmes, including the Marriage Loan Initiative that will be implemented by the Abu Dhabi Social Support Authority. It aims to promote a culture of simple marriages by providing a financial advance without interest or fees to citizen employees working in the public and private sectors who are about to get married.

The Abu Dhabi Social Support Authority will also implement the Maternity Leave Support for Women Working in Private Sector initiative, to extend the maternity leave of citizen mothers working in the private sector to 90 days to ensure sufficient time to rest and care for the newborn.

The Home Visit Service Initiative will also be implemented by the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority, which will provide assistance during the first weeks of motherhood, with the aim of supporting parents’ well-being and monitoring the child’s growth and development.

The fourth initiative that will be implemented by the Abu Dhabi Housing Authority is the Rental Assistance for Newlyweds, providing annual rental assistance to newly married couples through specified financial support that will last for four years. The support will gradually decline, with specific incentives linked to the birth of children.

The fifth initiative is the Loan Partial Deduction, which is an exemption of a percentage of the loan amount, specifically linked to the birth of a fourth, fifth, and sixth child in the family.

The Abu Dhabi Housing Authority will also implement the initiative titled Extending Housing Loan Repayment Period, for housing loans for a period of three years linked to the birth of the fourth, fifth, and sixth child.

To support parents in raising their children and enable them to begin a stable family journey, the programme aims to develop work-life balance systems and policies in cooperation with various partners. One of the key initiatives is designed to support working mothers and fathers with caregiving responsibilities, providing them with the flexibility needed to balance their daily lives and responsibilities. Additionally, the programme includes early childhood support initiatives that offers care services in government nurseries and creates more opportunities for children to enroll in these facilities.

The Emirati Family Growth Support Programme will be implemented over a period of 5 years, during which the positive impact of the initiatives will be assessed to ensure their contribution to building a more stable and prosperous community.