Saturday 20 / April / 2024
January 17
MINISTER OF MANPOWER
BACKS 2-YEAR VISA BAN
Oman’s Minister of Manpower has agreed with Shura Council members that the twoyear visa ban should stay. Two Shura members called on the minister to retain the controversial visa rule during a council session with Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Bakri, Minister of Manpower. Currently, expat workers who cannot obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from employers in the country must leave and cannot return for two years. There have been repeated calls to change the law and recently the government announced it is being studied. Neighbouring countries have already modified their rules to allow expats to work more freely. “We urge the ministry to keep the two-year visa ban rule to protect Omani business owners of SMEs” Mohammed Al Badi, a Shura member said, while Nasser Al Amri echoed his call.
January 2
BUDGET 2017 AIMS TO PUT
OMAN ON RIGHT TRACK
Oman’s Budget 2017 is tackling falling oil prices head on with a plan to put the country on the right path. With more austerity, cuts and the targeting of funds only to those projects and schemes that will make the country future-proof, the government hopes the annual budget – revealing a OMR3 billion deficit – will turn the Sultanate’s fortunes around. In one of the hardest hitting budget statements in recent years, Budget 2017 pulls no punches: public sector recruitment will be low, austerity measures will continue, subsidies will be reviewed, government assets will be sold off or privatised
and funding will only be channelled into projects essential for Oman’s non-oil future.
JANUARY 25
AFTER A DRY 2016, MUSCAT
HAMMERED IN A SINGLE DAY
Officially, 2016 saw zero rain fall in Muscat. Yesterday, the capital more than made up for it. For the whole of last year, weathermen recorded zero millimetres of rain in Muscat governorate. Yesterday, 18.2 mm of rain hammered Muscat City while Dhank recorded 24.2 mm, Buraimi 17.2 mm and Yanqul 21.2 mm up to 7pm yesterday. Heavy rain closed the Muscat Festival, caused flooding, delayed at least one fl ight, and left drivers stuck in long jams after fender-bender accidents. Traffi c signals on at least four junctions – including Airport Road – were knocked out of action by the deluge. The only silver lining was that some children got a day off to play in the puddles as many schools called parents to take their children back home, before water levels made it impossible for parents to reach the schools.
JANUARY 30
TRUMP’S FLIGHT BAN
HITS EXPATS IN OMAN
US embassy officials in Oman are cancelling visas of Oman residents who can no longer fl y to the USA in the wake of an executive order banning entry to nationals of seven countries. President Donald Trump’s executive order imposed a 90-day travel ban for nationals from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The US embassy in Oman has been working to advise people who hold visas on what to do next. Airlines have also been re-routing and refunding passengers who now fi nd themselves on a no-fl y list – thanks to their nationality. “We have people applying for visa on a regular basis. So if they’re one of the citizens of the seven countries, we are not able to schedule a visa appointment,” a US embassy spokeswoman in Muscat said.
FEBRUARY 1
DOUBLE BLESSING FOR OMAN’S ECONOMY
Oman’s economic prospects received a double vote of confi dence as a billion dollar investment was announced as research showed more than 80 per cent of CEOs in the Sultanate are confident their businesses will grow. Eighty one per cent of 25 leading CEOs interviewed from ten diff erent sectors in the Oman CEO outlook survey expect their organisation to grow in the next three years, according to KPMG. More than two thirds of them also expected the sector they operate in to grow as well. The news came as Oman Oil announced a whopping investment of $1 billion to build various projects this year, according to a top-level offi cial of the state-owned firm.
FEBRUARY 2
NATIONAL PLAN TO TACKLE
DRUG ADDICTION
A national strategy to deal with drug addiction in the Sultanate has been submitted for approval – and it’s all about helping addicts. The plan will target fi ve areas: prevention, combatting, policies, treatment and research. There is now a consensus within the government to help individuals whose lives are blighted by narcotics, according to the coordinator of a national committee for drug addiction. And three dedicated rehabilitation centres will be set up in Oman to help addicts recover from the scourge of drug addiction, the committee has revealed.
FEBRUARY 5
SHURA CALL TO FIX FUEL
PRICES GETS THUMBS UP
A call to fix fuel prices annually instead of monthly has been welcomed by industry experts and the community. Fuel should be set at a fi xed price for the year and those struggling to aff ord it should be considered, according to Shura Council members after they called a meeting in the wake of the latest fuel hikes. For the fi rst time in Oman’s history, diesel has crossed the 200 baisa mark and now costs 205 baisas a litre. M95 and M91 have also been hiked in price to 196
baisas for M95 and M91 to 186 baisas. In a matter of weeks, these fuels could also cross the 200 baisa mark. Following the announcement, a special committee at the Shura Council, tasked with tackling economic issues, immediately held a meeting to raise the issue with the government about implementing a ceiling for fuel prices and the possibility of setting a fi xed price for the rest of the year.
MARCH 7
OMAN’S HEALING HAND IN
YEMEN DRAWS PRAISE
More than 11,000 tonnes of mercy aid has been shipped to Yemen through Oman in the two years since fi ghting began, according to aid groups. “There are over two million who are out of school right now. The long term impact is very worrying. There is one child that dies every ten minutes in Yemen because of preventable diseases. That child could have been saved if he was vaccinated in time. Over 50 per cent of health facilities in the country are non-functional right now. “It’s clearly a crisis - a very serious crisis.” At many times, it’s been said that it’s a catastrophe on the verge,” said Rajat Madhok, Chief of Communication & Advocacy at Unicef in Yemen.
