Happiness initiative enters private sector
dubai — Investing in happiness helps businesses grow, increase profits and raise productivity rates, said Ohood bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness, on Saturday.
The minister was speaking at the first CEO Happiness Ball at Madinat Jumeirah, where the National Programme for Happiness and Positivity for the private sector was launched.
The step comes to answer the growing demand to implement the programme in the private sector following its great success in the government sector. The minister affirmed the pivotal role that the private sector and entrepreneurs play in supporting and amplifying the government’s efforts to spread happiness and positivity — making it all the more important for the government and private sector to forge partnerships in order to achieve the vision of making the UAE among the happiest countries in the world.
The Happiness Ball was attended by Mohammed Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Economy; as well as more than 100 executives, entrepreneurs and investors from the private sector.
Al Roumi said: “The UAE was founded on the principles of happiness and positive interaction between the public and private sectors. This was a key factor in
UAE was founded on principles of happiness and positive interaction between the public and private sectors. This was a key factor in transforming the UAE into a magnet for creative minds.”
Ohood bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Happiness
We spend nearly half of our life at work. It is absurd to have the work environment be anything but happy. The UAE is sparing no effort to become one of the happiest countries.”
Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, , Minister of Economy
transforming the UAE into a magnet for creative minds, entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors looking for a better life.” “The founding fathers of the UAE adopted happiness as a tactic,” she continued. “Our leadership keeps those principles alive today, this affirmation drives the UAE Government’s programmes, projects, and initiatives.”
Al Roumi reiterated that the partnership and integration between the private and government sectors are essential for the UAE to achieve its ambition to become one of the best countries in the world by its 50th anniversary, as stipulated in the UAE Vision 2021. It is important to exchange knowledge and expertise to build the projects of the future, which rely on innovation, leadership, and social responsibility to spread happiness and positive values in society, she said.
The minister asserted that investing in happiness helps businesses grow, increases profits and raises productivity rates, as scientific studies have shown a strong correlation between happiness at work and a productive environment. She quoted a study conducted by the iOpened Institute in Oxford, which shows that a happy employee has six times as much energy as an unhappy employee, double the productivity, and only one tenth as many sick-leave requests.
The programme
The National Programme for Happiness and Positivity in the private sector has been launched in collaboration with the Wharton School. It aims to provide privatesector employees with intuitive and practical skills necessary to become the drivers of happiness and positivity in their organisations, and beyond.
The event seeks to introduce the private sector to the National Programme for Happiness and Positivity, and to encourage institutions and companies to launch initiative that help spread the culture of happiness and positive values in the UAE.
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