Banking and Finance is the second best industry in the Mena region in salary packages, work-life balance, employment of local talent, and career growth opportunities, says a study.

Regional hiring expectancy in 2013 is very positive. In fact, the Bayt.com Job Index Survey of August 2013, revealed that 68 per cent of employers in the Middle East and North Africa region plan to hire throughout the year, with 30 per cent stating they will ‘definitely’ be hiring in the next three months (September, October, November).

There is also a regional increase in the number of job opportunities available on Bayt.com website, which is a good indicator of the region’s overall growth and development, the report said.

In order to identify the best industries in the Mena region, Bayt.com conducted the Bayt.com Top Industries Survey with the help of research and consulting firm, YouGov, and has found that the top industries across the Mena region rank as follows:

In terms of salary packages, banking and finance came in second position at 24 per cent after oil, gas and petrochemicals (48 per cent). The airline industry came in third place (23 per cent).

According to the Bayt.com Top Industries Survey, 37pc of professionals working in the banking and finance industry claim to be either ‘somewhat satisfied’ (32pc) or ‘totally satisfied’ (5pc).

When asked about industries that provide the best work-life balance, banking and finance gained a total of 23pc of votes, closely following oil, gas and petrochemicals (28pc). Government and civil service (22pc) came third when measured using this parameter.

According to the survey, 34pc of professionals in the banking and finance industry state that they are happy with their ability to maintain a healthy work-life balance in their current job. Of these, 7pc are ‘totally satisfied’ and 27pc are ‘somewhat satisfied’.

As for the industries that offer opportunities for advancement within one’s role, banking and finance came in second position just after oil, gas and petrochemicals, at 23pc.

According to the survey, a cumulative 28pc of banking and finance professionals in the region are content with their situation (19pc said they were ‘somewhat satisfied’, 9pc were ‘totally satisfied, and 29pc remained neutral).

Banking and finance is particularly strong in terms of job security and stability, with 38pc claiming to be satisfied with the stability and security of their job. 18pc stated that they are ‘somewhat dissatisfied’, while 29pc remained neutral.

On another note, the overall opinion is that banking and finance attracts the second highest proportion of local talent across the region (18pc), just after oil, gas and petrochemicals (25pc).

On Bayt.com, there is an increased demand in job postings related to banking and finance over the past several years. Some of the most commonly used keywords by employers are in fact “finance”, “banking”, “accountant”, “investment”, and “audit”.

There is an equal increase in number of vacancies posted on Bayt.com that include the keywords “finance”, “banking”, and “investment”, with each jobs related to these keywords increasing by 39pc each from 2009 to 2012. Vacancies that include the word “accountant” have increased by 42pc in the same time period. Meanwhile, it is the keyword “audit” that saw the most growth in the past 5 years, as we saw a 56% increase in job vacancies posted with that word.

All in all, banking and finance has been a favorable industry for years, and is becoming even more so lately.

More details of the survey is available at Bayt.com Top Industries Survey.