His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, received on Wednesday a delegation from the Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), headed by the Vice Chancellor Dr Abdullatif Al Shamsi.

The delegation comprised executive deans, department heads and college directors.

Sheikh Mohamed was briefed by Dr. Al Shamsi on the HCT's strategy and its "2nd Generation" vision for the next five years. The three-pillar strategy is aimed at achieving the strategic objective of preparing national capabilities of choice for the labour market, leading up to achieving 100 percent employability for Emirati graduates by 2021.

Sheikh Mohamed welcomed the delegation and emphasised the vital role played by the national academicians in developing students' capabilities and qualifying them to join the comprehensive development drive.

"The UAE, under the wise leadership of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, is moving ahead with developing national capabilities. This is our path to progress. There is a high demand for skilled and experienced national human resources. The HCT and other educational institutions have a vital role to play in achieving that goal," he said.

Sheikh Mohamed indicated that developing education is a top priority for the UAE's leadership.

"We believe in quality and we count on you to build national capabilities who will be a source of pride to their country and to the future generations. Currently, we have four different generations and we need to deal with each generation in a different manner. During the past 50 years, we witnessed a huge boom that required us to place quality and competitive education as a priority, and right now, our focus is to invest on human capital," he added.

The HCT strategy focuses on providing a flexible academic and vocational education, starting from the Diploma up to the Bachelor degree level to prepare national talents of technicians, operators, technologists and engineers to meet the needs of the country's industrial sectors. The strategy also promotes a ''hybrid education'' that combines academic and vocational education that prepares highly qualified students who are ready to join the labour market.

Dr. Al Shamsi said the strategy's third pillar focuses on national outcomes to foster Emiratisation in the private sector through developing career and professional skills, encouraging entrepreneurship, adopting innovative business concepts and promoting Small and Medium-sized Enterprises