UAE national service term reduced to 11 months
Emirati high school graduates will serve a shorter mandatory term in the Armed Forces in a major change to the national service programme.
The Ministry of Defence said men would now serve 11 months in uniform instead of 16 months, state news agency Wam reported. Emirati women can volunteer to perform the 11-month duty, and many do.
Emiratis who leave school without a diploma or qualifications must serve for three years as part of an initiative to better equip them for the future.
The directive came from Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Wam reported.
National service will be updated to include “increased realism in training”, the ministry said.
National service is mandatory for Emirati men aged between 18 and 30 and voluntary for those aged between 30 and 40.
It was introduced in 2014 as a 12-month term and was extended in 2018.
A report issued by the Abu Dhabi Judicial Department in 2017 credited the programme for a 75 per cent decline in crimes committed by young Emiratis between 2014 and 2017.
The most dramatic change was in the number of fights or assaults among those aged between 18 and 30 that led to death or disability.
Sixty one cases were reported during the three-year period, down from 274 in the three years before the national service programme was introduced.