Tanfeedh, a cornerstone of the government’s strategy to accelerate the diversification of the Omani economy, aims to also promote a culture of speedy policymaking and decision-taking across the state machinery, according to a high-level official.
Talal al Rahbi (pictured), Secretary General of the Supreme Council for Planning (SCP), said the initiative – also known as the National Programme for Enhancing Economic Diversification – seeks to address bureaucratic delays in the permitting and approvals process governing all new project proposals.
“Tanfeedh mean ‘implementation’, and this is not limited to the five promising sectors (identified at the outset of the programme for speedy economic diversification), but also the way how we work within the government to make sure we execute (our goals) and reach our targets,” Al Rahbi said.
He made the comments to a gathering of local and international investors at a forum held in the city last week.
Tanfeedh, launched in 2017, is designed to help various government stakeholders identify project opportunities and their relevant promoters and investors, and define a timeframe for their implementation. Impediments or challenges, if any, are to be resolved at high-level official meetings chaired by key decision-makers, he said.
“There is a monthly meeting chaired by the Minister responsible for the sector concerned, where they go through all of the challenges, and take decisions where necessary in order to move forward with the project’s implementation. This makes a huge difference in terms of how the project plans are implemented,” Al Rahbi stated.
These high-level committees, he said, include representatives from all of the government stakeholder agencies, with the private sector having a dominant presence as well. “This gives the private sector a voice, and they can bring their concerns on any challenges for discussion at these forums.”
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