Oman sees 10.4% jump in FDI in 2022: Ministry

Muscat - The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion (MOCIIP) said the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to RO18.14 billion until the third quarter of 2022, an increase of 10.4 percent compared to the same period in 2021, and the volume of trade exchange between the Sultanate of Oman and other countries was RO30, 421,400 as of September 2022, an increase of 46.18 percent.

The value of direct foreign investments in the manufacturing sector amounted to RO1, 717.100 until the end of the third quarter of 2022, compared to R1.5 million for the same period.

The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion issued 35 regulations to improve the business environment during the period 2020-2022, including the executive regulations of the Foreign Capital Investment Law, specifying a list of activities that stimulate the practice of foreign investment in them, the regulations of the Commercial Companies Law, the executive regulations of the Competition Protection and Prevention of Monopoly Law, and regulations for organizing and managing exhibitions.

Statistics issued by the ministry showed that the number of transactions completed through the “Invest Easy” portal amounted to 989,495 transactions in 2022, compared to 804,330 transactions in 2021, an increase of 23 percent.

The number of applications for investment licenses through the Invest Easy portal, from the beginning of the launch of the service until January 5, amounted to about 23,780 licenses, and the number of automatic licenses submitted during the past year reached 181,048 licenses, compared to 113,218 licenses in 2021, while the total automatic licenses from the launch of the service till the end of 2022 were about 338,629 licenses.

The total number of investors who obtained investor residency from the beginning of the program until the beginning of this January was about 1,219 investors of various nationalities, including the issuance of 725 investor residency cards for the 10-year category, 489 cards for the 5-year category, and 5 cards for the retired category.

Qais bin Mohammed al Yousuf, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, said that the directives of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik and his keen interest in facilitating and developing the business environment made the Sultanate of Oman a conducive place for business and investment growth.