The Middle East media market is among the world’s fastest growing media markets and presents ample opportunities for UAE nationals forging careers, said the organisers of an upcoming career fair in Abu Dhabi.

Organised by Informa Exhibitions, Najah, the specialised education, training and careers exhibition, takes place at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre from October 18 to 20.

“Media consumption in the Middle East is growing exponentially, whether film, broadcast, digital, music, mobile, or print, providing vast opportunities for young Emirati talent to create the best media content for the Arab world”, said Khurram Saeed, exhibition director for Najah.

While in Europe, global print advertising revenues are plummeting, across the Arab world they continue to grow by 15 per cent every year.

The Middle East is now home to more than 400 free-to-air television channels, more internet users per capita than the whole of Europe and more than 340 million consumers, of which 55 per cent are under 25.

There are more than 14,000 hours of Arabic television programming every day, and while mobile phone penetration is set to exceed 80 per cent in 2011, mobile application creation in the region remains minimal.

The Abu Dhabi Government-funded media and communications zone, twofour54, believes this all points to a unique opportunity for the UAE’s most creative young talent.

“The media and entertainment industries are very diverse and offer a number of exciting and sophisticated career opportunities for UAE Nationals”, said Wayne Borg, deputy CEO and chief operating officer of twofour54.

“Najah is an ideal platform to meet and advise students on the best career and talent development options that twofour54 can offer for their future. It is also an opportunity to discover young Arab talent who have great ideas in media and are looking for funding and support."

Named after the geographical co-ordinates of Abu Dhabi, twofour54 was created in 2008 with the purpose of establishing a sustainable Arabic media industry with Abu Dhabi becoming a regional centre of excellence in content creation across all media platforms including film, broadcast, music, digital media, events, gaming and publishing.

Visitors this year will again be able to take advantage of a popular psychometric assessment centre and advice clinic which offers on-one counselling on education and careers options by qualified career counsellors. – TradeArabia News Service