While construction firms in Dubai are shedding jobs, their counterparts in Qatar see the downturn as an opportunity to source staff for their projects.

Building, consultancy and engineering firms in the country have long struggled to attract key skills because of competition from Dubai, but they hope to take advantage of the redundancies that are sweeping across the emirate.

Developers, contractors and other property-related companies in Dubai have cut thousands of jobs in recent months as the financial slowdown has gripped the sector, grinding many projects to a halt.

The National