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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Outward Bound Oman marks 10th anniversary

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MUSCAT, NOV 2 - Outward Bound Oman recently celebrated 10 years of operations in Oman, at an event held under the auspices of Shaikh Khalid bin Omar al Marhoon, Minister of Civil Service, and in the presence of Outward Bound Oman Patron His Highness Sayyid Faisal bin Turki al Said and guests from government and corporate sectors.


Since May 2009, when it was first established in Oman by Founding Partners Dentons, Shell and Shaikh Suhail Bahwan, Outward Bound Oman has trained more than 14,000 people and created jobs for over 30 talented young Omanis. With the generous support of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, Outward Bound has now been established by Ministerial Decision, and operates under the Ministry of Social Development.


The first of three national training centres opened recently in Rimal al Sharqiya, the Duke of York, Patron of Outward Bound Global, described Outward Bound Oman as ‘a jewel in the global community’, and a recent international review team concluded that the operation in Oman was ‘absolutely exceptional’, with ‘an excellent focus on real learning’.


During the event, Head of Operations Mohamed al Zadjali spoke about the work Outward Bound Oman did to enhance the employability of young people in Oman, and to embed understanding of the government’s Vision 2040 programme; he also spoke about the increasing work being delivered to both the emerging talent of leading companies and the government sector.


It was announced at the event that thanks to the support of the Ministry of Social Development, a second national training centre is due to open in Al Khoudh in early 2020, and thanks to the Ministry of Oil and Gas Social Investment Committee, that construction of a third, flagship centre that would operate year round on Jabal Akhdhar would start before the end of 2019.


HH Sayyid Faisal bin Turki al Said presented awards to the headteachers of the three highest performing government schools who had attended Outward Bound courses in 2018-19. Also honoured at the event were Ali Al Khanbashi from BAE Systems, and Peter Laing of Driver Trett.

A key element in the success story of Outward Bound in Oman is the corporate community who, through their social investment programmes, fund Omani young people on the Outward Bound training courses, so developing their key life skills, and enhancing their employability. In 2018-19, Outward Bound Oman’s key corporate partners included Babcock, BAE Systems, BP, HSBC, Oman LNG, Omantel, PDO and Renaissance.


Outward Bound Oman General Manager Mark Evans commented that ‘the rapid growth of Outward Bound in Oman over the past 10 years is the result of the sustained hard work and commitment of many people, and of a genuinely productive and positive partnership between government, the private sector and the not-for-profit community. We thank everyone for their support and advice. For people to be speaking so highly of Oman in the global community is a great testimony to what is achievable when everyone works together’.


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