MUSCAT: The State Council on Tuesday gave approval to the proposal “Development of social security system,” submitted by the Social Committee, and decided to form a drafting committee to include the views of the council members in the report.
The council also discussed the “National Programme for Government Proficiency and Creativity” submitted by the special group and decided to study it further.
The session chaired by Dr Yahya bin Mahfoudh al Mantheri, Chairman of the State Council, was attended by members and the secretary-general of the council. At the outset, the chairman reviewed the agenda which included discussions on the report pertaining to the proposal submitted by the Social Committee on “Development of the social security system” and the proposal on “National Programme for Government Proficiency and Creativity” submitted by the special group as well as a number of reports related to council’s work.
He appraised the government’s efforts to provide social security umbrella and extend it to eligible persons in all governorates of the Sultanate, and appreciated the efforts and programmes implemented to improve government performance.
Later speaking about the social security system, Dr Hamed bin Sulaiman al Salmi, Head of the Social Committee, said that social security occupies a privileged place within the social protection system in Oman, where it is a pillar of social development.
Economic and social security are essential elements for maintaining of peace and improvement in the standard of living of individuals and families and strengthening the bonds of social cohesion, as these enshrine the values of solidarity and synergy among different generations and groups in the society.
He noted that through the study, the committee had considered the functioning of the social security system, its policies and legislations based on laws and regulations to develop them, improve the quality of services provided and create effective mechanisms to enable social security families to become self-reliant and exit from the social security service category.
It also aimed to identify other sources of funding for the needy to reduce dependence on government support, with the aim of achieving prosperity and stability and improving the quality of life of families.
The study indicated that attention to social protection system in the Sultanate began since the beginning of the blessed Renaissance and reviewed the steps adopted in this regard, including the establishment of the first ministry responsible for social action, and with the development of the concept of social work.
The study submitted a number of recommendations aimed at developing the social security system.
Further, the session discussed its proposal ‘National Programme for Government Proficiency and Creativity,’ following the explanations by Naashiah al Kharousi, Head of the Special Group, mandated to study the proposal.
She stated that the programme comes in support of the government’s efforts in the areas of performance development and upgrading the areas of public services provided by various official bodies, and to achieve economic growth.
Institutional performance of ministries and governmental bodies and institutions of service need to be developed and constantly reviewed and modernised to keep abreast of the accelerating changes in all social and economic fields.
In the light of the government’s estimated efforts on the development and review of government regulations and within the framework of the review of administrative accountability policies and the current motivation, the level of performance in government service agencies is increased.
This underscores the importance of adopting a national programme for developing the performance of government ministries, agencies and institutions of service, according to the methodology and global standards and performance indicators, in addition to recommendations aimed at strengthening the proposal.
The aim of the study is to create a programme that will enable government agencies to meet the requirements and expectations of the community in obtaining government services at a high level, with the highest efficiency and effectiveness.
It will also lead to a qualitative leap in the performance of government institutions.
The government’s innovative approach to the Sultanate, which provides the Sultanate with a competitive edge and a leading position, provides a reference and standard bases for measuring progress, spreading the culture of mastery and knowledge development, and an efficient service environment for government services.
The council noted the secretariat report related to the activities of the council for the period between the 8th session and the present one, as well as the approved the minutes of the eighth regular session of the third annual session of the sixth term.
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