Conference to focus on investment avenues of private sector, strategic location of Oman

Muscat: A forum on investment opportunities in Oman will be conducted by the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry on September 27 and 28 at Grand Millennium Hotel.
The forum, which will be conducted in collaboration with General Union of Chambers of Commerce Industry and Agriculture for Arab Countries, will be held under the auspices of His Highness Sayyid Shihab bin Tariq Al Said, advisor to His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said. The forum aims at highlighting investment opportunities in the Sultanate for the Arab private sector. The speakers at the two-day conference will highlight investment friendly environment in Oman, which include political stability, strategic location, developed infrastructure, free trade zones, easy procedures for doing business, availability of skilled manpower and liberal economy.
"Oman has many benefits for the investor, but we should think of a new way to attract investments," said Said bin Saleh Al Kiyumi, chairman of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), while addressing the media to announce the forum.
"We need to have only one place where all questions can be answered and all procedures done for the investor. Some businessmen find it challenging to invest in Oman due to the laws and procedures, but we have to move beyond that," added Al Kiyumi.
There are two sessions – the first one on major economic features of Oman presented by the Supreme Council for Planning and the second one on possible alternatives for diversification and the role of foreign investors presented by the International Monetary Fund. There will also be a paper on the role of Muscat Securities Market in economic diversification in Oman.
The second session will focus on investment opportunities in free trade zones. There will be two papers on investment opportunities presented by Duqm and Sohar, while a third paper will be presented on investment opportunities in Salalah Port. Another paper will be presented by the Arab Brazilian Chamber on the Brazilian experience in promoting free zones.
The conference on the second day will have three sessions and the first one is on investment opportunities in food security field. It will include four working papers and the first will be by Dr Fouad bin Jaffar Al Sajwani, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries on investment environment in food security in the Sultanate. The second working paper presented by Mohammed Al Mazroie, chairman of the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development will be on the experience of foreign investors in food security.
The third working paper will review the experience of an Omani investor in the field of food security. The fourth paper will highlight the experience of an Omani investor in the field of food security.
The second session will be on investment opportunities in the field of services sectors – tourism, education, healthcare and logistics. The working papers will highlight the investment strategy and the available business opportunities for private sector. The second working paper by the Ministry of Health will be on medical city, aspiration and horizons. The third working paper will highlight the role of Omani investment fund in enhancing investment activities in the Sultanate.
The fourth working paper will be on the importance of logistics sector as a promoting sector.