The Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa2023 survey by Bayt.com, the Middle East's #1 job site, and market research agency YouGov, was conducted to help professionals understand current satisfaction levels within certain industries and make an informed decision about their future. The survey revealed that55% of the MENA residents are satisfied with their working hours, followed by work culture (50%) and work-life balance (46%).
Most Popular Industries
Buoyed by the post-pandemic recovery, many industries in the MENA region are thriving with new career opportunities for professionals, with most job seekers interested in working in Banking/Finance/Accounting (9%), Advertising/Marketing/Public Relations and Business Consultancy/Business Management (both at7%).
Ola Haddad, Director of Human Resources at Bayt.com says: The Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa survey can help employers develop and implement recruitment strategies that meet the expectations of job seekers and, as a result, stand out from their competition. Ultimately, our research aims to provide job seekers with useful and valuable information to help them make more informed decisions.”
Changing Industries
Another major finding of the survey is that24% of MENA respondents have changed their industry at least once in the past two years. For those who have changed industries, better salaries (41%), better opportunities for career growth (29%) and lack of recognition (28%) are the top reasons for this change.
Nearly6 in10 professionals in the MENA region (58%) are considering an industry change in the next few months. Better salary (63%) is the top reason for considering an industry change, while better career growth follows at38%. Furthermore, Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals and IT/Internet/E-commerce (both at9%) emerge as the most appealing industries amongst those who consider an industry change.
On the other hand and when asked to look ahead, IT/Internet/E-commerce (28%) is seen as the top industry that is expected to record the strongest growth next year.
Most Attractive Industries
33% of the respondents believe that Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals is the industry which offers the best salary packages (inclusive of non-monetary benefits) in their country of residence. Nearly1 in5 believe that Banking/Finance/Accounting offer the best salaries after Oil, Gas and Petrochemicals.
Further, Education/Academia (23%), Healthcare/Medical Services (22%) and Banking/Finance/Accounting (20%) emerge as the industries which are the most attractive to females. Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals (19%), followed by Banking/Finance/Accounting and IT/Internet/E-commerce (both17%) are the top three industries in terms of attracting the highest proportion of local talents.
Respondents who are at the beginning of their careers revealed that Banking/Finance /Accounting and Military/Defence/Police (both at16%) hires the highest proportion of fresh graduates among other industries.
Zafar Shah, Research Director at YouGov said: “Understanding the changing needs and motivations of professionals can help employers determine which industries are best for them to focus on when recruiting. The Top Industries survey covers key topics such as work-life balance, job satisfaction, salary expectations and career growth opportunities. By leveraging the insights from the survey, recruiters can better understand what motivates professionals and consequently focus their recruiting efforts on those factors.”
Data for the Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa survey was collected online from18 January to3 February,2023. Results are based on a sample of1,764 respondents from the following countries: UAE, KSA, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine, Syria, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Sudan, and others.