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Rami Al-Saadi

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PUBLISHED BY ICN PRESS

  • Qatar ranked second globally in the labor market indicator of the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook.
  • The result sits under the business efficiency pillar and points to reforms in legislation, investment access and government services.
  • Qatar Chamber says the standing will lift investor confidence and help private firms recruit specialized talent.
  • The ranking follows a June 23 announcement placing Qatar first regionally for economic resilience.

A single number tells the story. The Qatar 2026 labor market index placed the country second in the world, a position that carries weight for anyone deciding where to move capital, open an office or take a job. The ranking comes from the 2026 IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, and it sits inside the report’s business efficiency pillar. Behind that number is a longer question about how a small economy built a workplace system that draws people in and keeps them.

What the ranking measures

The yearbook grades economies on how well their labor markets function. Qatar came second on that measure. According to a QNA report, the standing reflects the strength of the national economy, the flexibility of the labor market and the country’s capacity to attract and hold onto talent. Those threads run back to Qatar National Vision 2030, the long-term plan that shapes much of the country’s economic policy.

Economists linked the result to steady changes rather than one event. They pointed to updated labor legislation, a smoother business environment, wider investment openings, digital transformation programs and better government services. Each change, on its own, looks modest. Together, they moved the needle.

Why investors are watching

Ali Bu Sherbak Al Mansori, Acting General Manager of Qatar Chamber, said the second-place standing showed the success of the economic policies and legal reforms the country adopted in recent years. He said those steps made the labor market more appealing and built a system that protects both workers and employers.

Al Mansori tied the ranking to investor behavior. He said it would strengthen confidence among local and international businesses in an environment shaped by stability, transparency, developed infrastructure and supportive commercial law. Private companies, he said, feel the effect directly. They reach specialized talent more easily, and they operate in a business climate that keeps improving. Those advantages, in his view, help Qatari firms grow and compete across the region and beyond.

The Qatar labor market efficiency story also connects to the country’s broader ambitions. Al Mansori said the ranking would support private-sector recruitment for expansion, feeding into Qatar National Vision 2030 and the Third National Development Strategy. He said Qatar Chamber would keep working with government agencies to deepen public-private partnerships.

A pattern across the rankings

The Qatar 2026 labor market index result did not arrive in isolation. On June 23, the National Planning Council announced that Qatar ranked first regionally and among the world’s top five economies for economic resilience in the same yearbook. The council said the performance covered economic, business, institutional and social measures.

The record stretches back further. Qatar entered the global top 10 of the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook for the first time in 2025, ranking ninth overall. Its Qatar business efficiency ranking rose from 11th to fifth that year as reforms strengthened labor-market flexibility and supported the private sector. The country held seventh place in both economic performance and government efficiency, and it moved up three spots in infrastructure.

Other indices tell a similar story. Qatar ranked first in the Middle East and North Africa in the 2025 Global Peace Index, placing 27th globally among 163 countries. It reached the top 20 in the 2025 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, which assessed 69 countries. The labor market result adds one more marker to that run, and it raises a question worth holding onto. A country this size does not land near the top of a global list by accident. The Qatar 2026 labor market index reflects years of deliberate work, and the next test is whether the momentum holds.

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  • Economy, GCC, Qatar

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Apple's iPhone Duo
  • iPhone

The iPhone Duo is Apple’s first foldable iPhone, and it opens like a small book into a 7.6-inch screen. Closed, you hold a 5.4-inch outer display that fits in a pocket. Both screens share the same aspect ratio, so a video or app scales cleanly as you move between them. Stand it up on a table, and it works hands-free for calls or video. Apple showed the phone on September 9 at its Surprise and Shine event in Cupertino, where new chief executive John Ternus led his first keynote. He said rival foldables often feel like two phones stuck together. The Duo tries to feel like one device that changes size when you need it.

What the screens and camera can do

Open the Duo and the inner display runs 50 percent larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max. A custom nano-texture finish cuts glare and hides the crease, the seam that has annoyed foldable owners for years. Peak brightness reaches 3000 nits, so the screen stays readable outdoors. Inside, an under-display FaceTime camera keeps the view whole, with no notch breaking the screen. The rear camera leans on a 48MP Dual Fusion system with a main and an ultra-wide lens. There is no telephoto, a trade Apple made to save room in the thin body. Smart Take reads the scene and snaps the photo when everyone poses, so you can stand in the shot instead of behind it. You can also shoot 48MP photos and 4K video at up to 120 frames per second.

iPhone Duo specs that matter for daily use

The iPhone Duo specs point to a phone built for long, heavy days. Inside sits the A20 Pro chip with a vapor chamber that spreads heat during games and video edits. Apple pairs it with a dual-battery design that fits more cells into the frame. You get up to 31 hours of video on the inner screen and up to 44 hours on the outer one. Plug it in, and it reaches 50 percent in about 20 minutes. A Grade 5 titanium frame and a precision hinge give the body its strength, and Touch ID moves to the side button in place of Face ID.

iPhone Duo prices are ridiculously high

Here is the part your wallet cares about. The iPhone Duo price starts at $1,999 for 256GB in the United States, which makes it the most expensive iPhone in the lineup. In the UAE, iPhone Duo starts at AED 8,499 for the 256 GB, AED 9,349 for the 512 GB, AED 11,049 for the 1 TB, and the laptop-price level of AED 13,599 for the 2 TB. Preorders open October 16, and the iPhone Duo release date lands on October 23. Apple plans a first wave across more than 70 countries, then adds 28 more on October 30. For comparison, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts near $1,899.

Why the foldable iPhone arrives only now

Apple waited years while Samsung and others sold foldables. Now the foldable iPhone brings iOS 27 features built for two screens, like Split View and apps that respond to how you hold the phone. eSIM handles the connection, since there is no SIM tray anywhere. Apple Pencil support arrives later in 2026. That gap of a few weeks after the iPhone 18 Pro points to a slower, careful rollout for a harder build. If you have wanted a phone that turns into a small tablet without feeling clumsy, this is Apple’s answer, and you can hold one this month.

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Work from Park initiative
  • Business

The Work from Park initiative puts bookable workspaces inside Dubai’s public parks, starting with Al Barsha Pond Park. Dubai Municipality announced the programme on 19 April 2026 and said it had signed two memoranda of cooperation to deliver it. One went to Group AMANA, which builds the units, and the other to Letswork LLC, which operates them.

Entrepreneurs, freelancers, small and medium-sized enterprises

The structure is a public-private partnership. Dubai Municipality provides the park and the mandate. Private firms handle design, construction, and daily operation. The municipality said the model gives the private sector a route into public facilities while each site keeps its role as a park.

Target users are entrepreneurs, freelancers, small and medium-sized enterprises, and anyone doing remote work in Dubai. Content creators get dedicated production rooms, which the municipality said are meant to strengthen their place in the emirate’s creative economy.

Letswork runs the booking side. Users reserve space through the Letswork app, check in on arrival and use one membership across the company’s network of venues. The offer covers desks by the hour, event space, podcast recording and production rooms for creators. Letswork will also run training programmes and group sessions for creative talent and new businesses.

How the Work from Park initiative is built

Group AMANA delivers the first site through its DuBox unit. DuBox builds the workspace modules in a factory, then transports them to the park and assembles them on site. The municipality said this shortens the build schedule, reduces waste and lowers the environmental footprint compared with conventional construction. Units can be reconfigured later as demand shifts.

The Al Barsha Pond Park site was scheduled to open in May 2026. Letswork now lists it as a bookable venue on its platform. The listing describes modular pods with high-speed Wi-Fi, power and climate-controlled seating, plus podcast studios and creative production rooms. Members can book day passes, meeting rooms and private offices under one Letswork membership.

Dubai Municipality said the Work from Park initiative would add more sites across the emirate later in 2026. Locations and opening dates for those have yet to be confirmed.

Bader Anwahi, CEO of the Public Facilities Agency at Dubai Municipality, said the partnerships combine advanced construction methods with private sector expertise to produce public infrastructure “that is flexible, sustainable, and aligned with modern lifestyles and work patterns.”

Richard Abboud, CEO of Group AMANA, said modular construction lets the company build efficient, adaptable units at speed.

Why the Work from Park initiative fits Dubai’s planning goals

The programme sits under three policy frameworks. Dubai’s 2040 Parks and Greenery Strategy targets 95 million park visits a year by 2040. Land use falls under the Dubai Urban Plan 2040. Economic targets through 2033 come from the Dubai Economic Agenda D33.

Omar AlMheiri, co-founder of Letswork, said the partnership would add dedicated creative spaces and podcast studios. He described it as a step toward changing where and how people in the UAE do flexible work.

Dubai Municipality describes the Work from Park initiative as the first of its kind. Existing Dubai coworking spaces operate from office towers, hotels and retail sites. This programme moves the format onto municipal parkland, with the municipality as host and a private platform as operator.

Outdoor workspaces in Dubai face one obvious constraint: summer heat. The Letswork listing addresses this with climate-controlled seating inside the pods. Demand across a full year of operation will show whether the format holds. The second site, once announced, will be the next signal of how fast the municipality intends to scale.

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