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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Tenders may increase in coming years

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By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: Jan 29 - Although there is a budgetary ceiling on spending, tenders for many projects are expected to be floated in the coming years. In this regard, experts point out that projects that are part of the Vision 2020 strategy and 9th Five-Year Development Plan, besides scores of new ventures in manufacturing, tourism and logistics at Tanfeedh, bode well for investments in the country. The 9th plan targets about RO 41 billion worth of investments, while Tanfeedh has new projects worth RO 16.3 billion on offer. “The government has made steady efforts to enhance doing business and encouraging private sector investments.


Many regulations and procedures are either eased or tailored to suit the investors,” said Davis Kallukaran, financial expert and investor. The new proposed foreign capital law allows 100 per cent foreign ownership of companies in Oman, while a new law announced by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has waived minimum capital for contracting companies. The 9th plan attaches great importance for construction by ensuring optimum utilisation of resources and investment opportunities. “The policies of the government help the private sector play a bigger role in enhancing economic growth and creating thousands of job opportunities for Omanis,” said Davis.


The plan aims at reducing the contribution of oil in the GDP at current prices to 26 per cent. It was 44 per cent during the 8th plan.


According to MEED Opportunities Oman 2017 report, spending levels should remain relatively high in the coming years.


“With only five years left to deliver its Vision 2020 strategy, the coming years are expected to be a busy period for Oman. The plan will see a focus on the development of non-oil sectors such as manufacturing, transportation and logistics, tourism, fisheries and mining as the government continues with its diversification agenda,” points out the report.


It is also expected to see the private sector play a much bigger role in infrastructure delivery, with a series of public-private partnership planned in the healthcare, logistics and tourism sectors, the report says.


Of the total investments unveiled at Tanfeedh, the contribution from the private sector stands at RO 14 billion, while the public sector is expected to provide between RO 1.5 billion and RO 2.5 billion in contributions.


Tourism sector aims to increase its contribution to the GDP and make it one of the main sources of national income.


The Tourism Strategy 2016 -2040, which serves as a roadmap for this promising sector, aims at enhancing the Sultanate’s position as a tourism hub and attracting investments to the sector.


In the field of manufacturing industries, Oman focuses mainly on petrochemicals to benefit from the competitive edge of the local economy.


All-out efforts are being made to develop the logistics sector in a sustainable way to meet the needs of the economic and construction activity in the Sultanate and to keep pace with the world developments in this field.


Objectives of logistics strategy announced by the Sultanate recently represented in increasing the contribution of the logistics sector in the GDP growth, raising the Omani market share of goods that flow into the region and increasing employment opportunities provided by the sector.


Similarly, steps are being taken to regularise the mining sector and develop it to ensure optimum utilisation of its resources.


A new mining policy is expected to be announced soon.


The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has been racing ahead with the development of the fisheries sector.


In this context, the fisheries sector strategy preparation (2013-2020) and the strategy of fisheries sector (2020-2040) were developed that sketch the landmarks of the roadmap to continue the efforts for the advancement of the sector.


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