MUSCAT: Oman’s foreign policy will be unaffected and consistent with those pursued by His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, said Dr Ali bin Masoud al Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday.
Speaking to Bloomberg on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, he said that His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tareq has made it clear in his first statement to Oman and the world that he will be ‘consistent with the policies of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos and Oman’s relationship with the world will remain unaffected, and that would work on expanding the economy by enabling the private sector.”
Dr Sunaidy said: “His Majesty the Sultan is very clear about Oman’s commitment to the region. We believe in security and stability of the region. We also contribute to world peace. At the same time, we are an inward-looking economy and have been focusing on diversification over the last five years.”
On implementation of value added tax (VAT), he said: “We are committed towards launching it at the beginning of 2021.”
He underlined the fact that His Majesty the Sultan has been also leading the ambitious Oman Vision 2040 programme. The minister said Oman will be consistent with its foreign policy, but the reform is inevitable. Our GDP dropped from RO 30 to RO 26 billion in 2014, but now we are back to RO 30 billion level.
On the ideal oil prices for Oman and the region, the minister said: “We are hoping at $70 a barrel oil prices, but we are getting accustomed to prices below $60. The economy is being revived at $60, but a price of $70 would have been more comfortable.”
Regarding diversification, “We are focusing on manufacturing, tourism, fisheries, and logistics as part of the diversification policy. We are looking at a growth rate of 2.5 to 3 per cent unless there is any big development that interrupts growth in the neighbourhood. We have tuned our foreign investment and the public-private partnership (PPP) laws, including in the power sector.
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