Effective institutional readiness begins with empowerment

Muscat: The two-week Food Security Lab, organised by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, aimed to attract investments in the food sector and enhance food security. The event, held at the St. Regis Hotel in Al Mouj, is expected to generate valuable initiatives and recommendations to promote sustainability.
The 2025 edition of the lab is part of a series that began in September 2021, followed by the Halhala Clinics for Food Security Projects in 2022, and the Food Security Labs in 2023 and 2024.
Mohammed bin Mansour al Riyami, Capacity Development Specialist at the Oman Vision 2040 Implementation Unit, stated, 'We are developing qualitative initiatives to enhance institutional performance, including training programmes for future leaders and job rotation guides to empower employees and ensure knowledge continuity.'
Al Riyami also mentioned plans for a unified electronic training platform to provide the employees with specialised training programmes and certifications, promoting a culture of continuous learning.
In terms of partnerships, Al Riyami highlighted collaborations with public and private sectors to design job qualification programmes and career paths, aiming to enhance national efficiency and local investment opportunities.
The ministry is working on performance indicators to measure institutional readiness, service quality, sectoral impact and human capital development. These indicators will be displayed on digital dashboards for transparent monitoring.
The empowerment and development pillar of the Food Security Lab 2025 focuses on building institutional and human capacities, strengthening partnerships, and empowering communities in the agricultural, fisheries and water sectors to enhance sector efficiency and serve strategic goals.
The ministry's efforts aim to develop an integrated system that invests in human capital and fosters a flexible institutional environment to address food security challenges and align with national transformation goals.