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November 18, 2014

Sultanate of Oman Celebrates its 44th National Day




Sultanate of Oman’s 44th National Day

November 18, 2014

 

 On the 18th of November every year, Omanis celebrate their National Day, recalling the anniversary of the Omani Renaissance which kicked off 44 years ago and still presses ahead towards the achievement of further progress and prosperity for the citizens. The country is open towards its regional and international spheres, extending a hand of friendship and peace to various countries of the world. Its policy derives its fundamentals from the judicious Omani identity and its culture which originates from its Islamic heritage and its Arabic values that are deep-rooted in human civilization. The country is also inspired by the Royal vision and guidelines laid down by Sultan Qaboos. When drawing out plans for the nation’s rebuilding, His Majesty was actually racing with time to compensate his people for what they missed and to reinstate their dignity and prestige in the world. Hence the Omani renaissance was unleashed, unconfined and unconstrained by any particular system. It has been a blend of originality and modernization. It has taken from others what serves its purposes and it has dropped what contravenes its principles. Oman’s citizens, with all the ethics and values they represent, have been the moving force behind this renaissance, inspired in this approach by the character of the Architect of Oman’s renaissance, Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, who commands a clear vision about what he wishes to achieve for the country and its people, the State and society. The Sultan took upon himself the responsibility of reviving the glorious human civilization of the ancestors and the duty of closely attaching the people to their homeland so that they might strongly sense the depth of citizenship.

 

FOREIGN POLICY

The Omani foreign policy derives its origins from the rational thinking of Sultan Qaboos who perceives matters with wisdom and objectivity, away from impulsive emotions or rushing when critical political issues emerge or worsen, irrespective whether this occurs in the local front, the Arab region or the international arena.

In a profound description of the Sultanate’s domestic policy, His Majesty the Sultan said in his royal address before the 5th annual convening of the Council of Oman in 2012, “Our domestic policy as you have known it is always based on constructive action in the interest of the public as we keep abreast of the modern age, preserving our identity, principles and values in which we take pride. As for our foreign policy, it is in its essence a call for peace, harmony and close cooperation between all nations, commitment to the principles of justice, fairness, non-interference in the internal affairs of other nations and the settlement of disputes through peaceful means in a manner that safeguards the security, stability, prosperity and progress of all humanity."

With this clear vision, the Sultanate has established and maintained good relations with other states and has gained its reputation and credibility as a peace-loving nation that is committed to resolving disputes through positive dialogue and other peaceful means. The Sultanate has thus gained the esteem and trust of other nations of the world. Oman’s efforts have led to success on many occasions, narrowing differences and resolving disputes among sisterly or friendly states within the region and beyond. This has earned the Sultanate more respect at all levels.

ON THE LEVEL OF THE (GCC)

At the level of the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the Sultanate has established close ties with sisterly states and it still plays an active role in developing and upgrading cooperation among GCC states, even prior to the establishment of the GCC, towards the achievement of the aspirations of the peoples of the region. On one hand, Oman worked with all towards the practical application of Gulf citizenship and, on the other hand, took stronger steps for more cooperation with Yemen and Iran aimed—all with the purpose of achieving stability and prosperity in the region.

ON THE LEVEL OF THE ARAB WORLD

       

The Sultanate has been able to establish advanced relations with other countries and nations and—thanks to its composure, frankness and transparency when dealing with others—has expressed its position with full confidence, while at the same time exerting all possible efforts to support any benign action meant to achieve security and stability, regionally and internationally.

Sultan Qaboos has always been keen on meeting his GCC brethren to consult with them about whatever might serve the region’s people.

The Sultanate supports efforts to develop the Arab League and institutions of joint Arab action in general in their endeavours to respond to the aspirations of the Arab people for a comprehensive Arab renaissance.

About the Middle East peace process, the Sultanate supports efforts aimed at achieving a fair and lasting settlement which guarantees peaceful co-existence between Arab countries and Israel and ends Israel's occupation of all Arab territories, including Palestine and the occupied Arab territories in Syria and Lebanon.

In reaffirmation of its solidarity with the Arab nation, the Sultanate always takes part in Arab summits and it spares no effort in serving the common interests and cementing the Arab ranks.

On the level of the Global Arena

In fact, Oman’s positive action is not limited to the GCC or Arab states, but extends to the greater global arena through Africa, Asia, Europe and the United States and regional and international organizations in which the Sultanate has membership. This reflects the Sultanate’s deep understanding of the fact that the region’s peace and stability are affected by what goes on in other parts of the world.

The Sultanate also supports the efforts of the United Nations and its affiliate organizations and bodies, including the UNESCO, the International Labour Organisation, the International Atomic Energy Agency and the UN Human Rights Council to foster positive dialogue and extend bridges of peace and understanding between nations of the world.

In the Asian arena, the Sultanate's ties assumed a dynamic pace, with a host of programmes activated recently to achieve a wide range of economic, commercial and technological goals. Oman's relations with Asian states are all based on strong political grounds.

SHURA (PARLIAMENTARY CONSULTATION)

Now that the Omani Renaissance enters its 44th year, the Sultanate—under His Majesty the Sultan’s wise leadership and judicious future vision—has provided citizens with all means of self-advancement and qualified them to be true partners in nation building alongside the government.

So that citizens would exercise their full role in this partnership, proper institutions have been set up to achieve this goal. The establishment of the Council of Oman, with its bicameral system of governance (the State Council and Majlis Ash'shura) has been a turning point in the country’s history, an evidence that the ruler who took the helm of leadership has done so for the sake of the country and its citizens and that such a self-denied leader who meets people in their villages would not give up his promise to develop the Omani Shura system of parliamentary consultation.

TOLERANCE

The Sultanate has guaranteed religious and intellectual freedom to citizens and residents alike, acting from the view that these freedoms are human rights that cannot be confiscated by any means.

The Sultanate exerts tangible efforts in enhancing the concept of coexistence and tolerance for which our world today is in great need more than any other time before. Hence the Sultanate set out on a mission to reinforce principles of respect for religious freedoms. This approach has been realized through Oman’s keen efforts to communicate with ‘The Other’, partly through the establishment of interfaith dialogue centres and partly through the establishment of academic chairs at renowned world universities to propagate the true tenets of Islam, which is a religion that advocates peace and calls for peaceful coexistence among nations.

Oman has been keen on organizing a mobile exhibition which tours countries of the world to convey the Sultanate’s experience in religious tolerance and co-existence that prevail across the spectrum of its cosmopolitan population. It has also organized symposiums on propagating the principles of tolerance.

The US State Department’s annual report on religious freedoms of 2013 hailed the level of religious tolerance in Oman towards other faiths among different communities in the country. The report reaffirmed a fact stated by earlier reports that tolerance is a constant tradition in Oman because it stems from the Omani spirit which rejects religious fanaticism and sectarian extremism.

HIS MAJESTY SULTAN QABOOS

      

In this context, it is worth noting that His Majesty Sultan Qaboos reaffirmed upon the opening of the 5th Term of the Council of Oman on October 31, 2011 that “The more thought becomes diverse, open and free from fanaticism, the more it becomes a correct and sound basis for building generations and achieving the progress of nations.”

In this context, the 13th session of “Symposium on Developing Jurisprudence Sciences” was held in Oman from 6 to 9 April, 2014 and it was attended by more than 100 scholars, intellectuals and researchers. The symposium tackled many concepts about sharing life experiences among Muslims themselves and with other nations, in one country and in one world.

The city of Brasilia was the latest venue to the latest round of "Message of Islam" exhibition, held on the sidelines of the recent World Cup finals. The exhibition spotlighted the noble message of tolerance. It highlighted efforts to achieve global peace and support constructive coexistence so that all would reap the fruits of development.

In June 2014, the exhibition unveiled various projects, including a fine art exposition which presented to members of the public a set of spiritual values in a blend of calligraphy, decoration and art. Four fine art tableaux incarnating supplication and peace were on display.

Also launched was a project called "World Message", which is a global media campaign aimed to spread the culture of coexistence, peace, tolerance and harmony among nations. The organizers distributed postcards highlighting these values via social media and websites in different languages.

Another campaign titled "Act For Tolerance" was launched, and this one targeted young men and women from all countries of the world.

Meanwhile, the Sultan Qaboos Academic Chairs in renowned world universities play a vital role in promoting the study of Arab and Islamic civilizations and activating dialogue among religious groups.

EDUCATION …

   

   

Since the outset of the modern Omani renaissance, education has been accorded the greatest attention through the Royal speeches of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, who considers that education is the ultimate goal for which all means must be made available.

The Sultanate’s quest to improve education has been aimed at building qualified human resources to meet the requirements of development now and in future. The Basic Education plan is focusing more and more on scientific subjects, mathematics and languages. New subjects have also been introduced to help cope with progress in information technology and the needs of the labour market for skill manpower.

The number of students in government schools in the School Year 2013-2014 stood at 523,818, of whom 266,353 were males and 257,465 were females. The number of government schools stood at 1,045; teachers 54,610; administrative staff 11,480 and supervisory staff 2,379.

HIGHER EDUCATION

    

Higher education is the first criteria by which the progress of nations is measured because of its significant role in drawing out strategies for the development of human resources. It has been one of the basic approaches of the modern Omani renaissance. Therefore, importance has been attached to the setting up of higher education institutions and colleges in different technical, health, banking and religious domains to help meet the needs of all sectors for qualified human resources.

Guided by the directives of Sultan Qaboos, the government recently increased the intake of students at higher education institutions by providing 1,500 external scholarships and 7,000 domestic scholarships.

FIRST PLACE AT WORLD LEVEL

   

The Sultanate has occupied first place at world level in the effective use of health resources. This reaffirms its earnst quest to provide world class health services to citizens wherever they might be on this land and throughout their life. Proper planning that the Sultanate continued to adopt through a series of five-year plans since 1976 led to tremendous transformation of the health sector, and this upgraded the general health status of the population.

This year, 2014, is the fourth year in the 8th Five Year Plan (2011-2015), which constitutes a major shift forward in health planning since the 7th Five Year Plan—which is the methodology of “Strategic Planning”. This approach provided a clear vision in determining the challenges and needs of priority.

ATTRACT MORE SPECIALIZED MEDICAL WORKFORCE

    

This year has also witnessed the enforcement of the new medical bylaw which is expected to attract more specialized medical workforce, besides upgrading the qualifications of existing occupants of such specialisations among nationals, since it has become more and more difficult to find medical specialists in the backdrop of the current international competition.

Health Vision 2050 is a long-term plan forming a transitional stage which will further upgrade the health system to keep pace with medical and technical development in the global arena.

SOCIAL CARE IN THE GOVERNMENT’S PRIORITIES

  

   

Social care gains special place in the Omani government’s priorities, and the progress in the this field aims at achieving prosperity and improving the quality of life for citizens, thus serving as a gateway to all other development operations.

Social services and programmes recently witnessed great expansion, both in quantity and quality. Focus has been laid on needy segments of society and individuals who require assistance to adapt to the challenges of life, like children, the old-aged and the disabled.

BIGGEST BUDGET IN ITS HISTORY

     

The national economy posted 5% growth in 2013, benefiting from a rise in oil production, the stability of oil prices and the Sultanate’s espousal of an encouraging financial policy that is supportive of the monetary sector, coupled with strong, growing local demand.

The Sultanate began 2014 by the announcement of the biggest budget in its history: The volume of spending was set at RO 13.5 billion, with emphasis on increasing developmental and investment spending in line with the approved goals of the Five Year Plan (2011-2015).

FUTURE VISION "OMAN 2040"

The Main Committee for Oman 2040 was formed in 2013 to devise a new vision which benefits from economic and social developments in the local, regional and international arenas, while at the same time taking into account the ‘Oman 2020’ assessment made by the Secretariat General of the Supreme Council for Planning. 

INDUSTRY THE MAIN CONTRIBUTORS

  

The industrial sector is considered one of the main contributors to economic and social development after the oil sector. The industrial sector’s significance stems from its capability to provide added value, employment opportunities to citizens and a large part of society’s need for commodities. Statistics show that the value of direct foreign investment in the converting industries sector stood at RO 1.3 billion in 2012 and that the industrial sector constituted 18.3% of total foreign investments. The contribution of industrial activities to the GDP during 2013 rose by 2.8% to RO 5.4 billion, constituting 17.6% of the total local product.

His Majesty the Sultan’s Cup Competition for the best five factories has been held annually since its institution in 1991, to promote the goals of the government’s industrial strategy and encourage Omani factories to keep up to date with the latest technology, comply with standard specifications and increase the percentage of Omanis in their workforce.

SMAL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

  

The sector of small and medium enterprises (SME) witnessed major upgrade in 2013 through the establishment of the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises under Royal Decree No 36/2013, issued on 30 May 2013. The Authority seeks to develop and promote SMEs to enable them to obtain the funding and service they need in coordination with government and private sector establishments concerned.

MAINTAINED ITS 40TH PLACE IN THE GLOBAL ELECTRONIC

  

The Sultanate maintained its 40th place in the Global Electronic Preparedness Report 2014. The report measures the extent to which countries are prepared to develop their ICT sector.

The report showed that the Sultanate continued to maintain high standards of performance in “efficiency of government procedures, efficiency of the justice system and an increase in number of mobile phone subscriptions and government spending on advanced information technology, among other criteria.

OMANI PORTS AND ATTRACTING INVESTMENTS

  

During the years of its current modern renaissance, the Sultanate set up many commercial and industrial ports and maritime harbors which play a leading role in attracting investments and encouraging non-oil sectors to contribute to the diversification of the national income.

The Sultanate is implementing various programmes of port development to keep pace with the country's economic progress.

The ports network includes Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat Governorate, the Port of Salalah in Dhofar Governorate, Duqm Port in Al Wusta Governorate and Sohar Industrial Port in the Governorate of North Batinah.

ROAD NETWORK

   

The road network in the Sultanate has undergone continuous modernization: its capacity has been upgraded with a view to offering smooth traffic and achieving road safety. The Sultanate is working to link rural areas with urban centres through the construction of a comprehensive set of internal roads and the expansion of dust roads.

By December 2013, the total lengths of roads in the Sultanate stood at 12,837 kilometres.

AIR TRANSPORT

  

The construction of Muscat and Salalah airport and domestic airports in Sohar, Ras al Hadd and Duqm aims to keep pace with the country's economic development and accommodate the increasing number of tourists visiting the Sultanate.  The capacity of all these airports put together is expected to be 15 million passengers a year in the first stage. Out of this, 12 million passengers will be handled by the new Muscat International Airport, which is being built in four stages, taking its annual capacity to 48 million passengers in a year. The new Salalah Airport will activate the tourism activity in Dhofar Governorate. Its capacity during the first stage is 1 million passengers a year and it will receive 6 million passengers a year by the completion of its last stage.

MARITIME TRANSPORT 

  

The Al Mazyouna VLC (very large crude carrier) is considered the latest in a series of VLCs being added to the fleet of Oman Shipping Company. Commissioned in 2014, Al Mazyouna is 332 metres long, 60 metres wide and has a capacity of 319,000 metric tons.

The government-owned Oman Shipping Company is building a comprehensive fleet of carriers of crude oil, chemical products, liquefied petroleum gas and general goods. So far the company owns 43 vessels having a total capacity of 8 million tons.

SULTAN QABOOS PRIZE FOR ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION

   

The Sultanate, when implementing various plans and projects, works to reinforce concepts of proper handling of environmental resources, since these represent one of the pillars of the country’s renaissance. The Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs has shouldered the responsibility of raising public awareness about environment conservation. It has organized many events and activities to highlight this objective with the participation of government and private establishments and civil society institutions.

This prize reflects the attention and appreciation of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos for institutions and individuals who make outstanding achievements towards the protection of environment at a global level.

TOURISM

 

  

  

The Sultanate's revenues from international tourism in 2012 crossed the $1 billion mark. This reflects the success of efforts to promote the Sultanate, which is considered the fourth largest global tourism market in the GCC region. The number of tourists who visited the Sultanate in 2013 stood at 1.9 million, among 41% came from other GCC states.

FESTIVALS

 

 

 

  

Muscat Festival, held in the first quarter of every year, has been gaining greater popularity among citizens, residents and tourists, particularly from GCC states. The turnout of Muscat Festival 2014, held from January 23 to February 22, was 1.5 million visitors.




 














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