Oman celebrates 47th Renaissance Day

Oman is celebrating its 47th Renaissance Day on July 23, an occasion for the citizens to reiterate their allegiance to Sultan Qaboos, architect of the country’s progress.
Their proclamation of allegiance is associated with profound feelings of love, gratitude, appreciation and loyalty to Sultan Qaboos, whose wise leadership developed a modern state established on solid foundations of equality, civilized citizenship, rule of the law. The Sultan put the country on the right track for progress and growth which benefits all citizens.

On this day, the Omani people ponder over the achievements made in the past 47 years. The efforts of the Sultan, coupled with the resourcefulness of the people molded the country into the exact honorable shape that the Sultan had envisioned and planned for an oasis of peace and prosperity that abounds with all means of dignified life.

While the country’s rebirth date of July 23, 1970 constituted the gateway to a new brilliant reign, Omanis today continue to reap the fruits of the past years of ardent nation building. They gratefully savour the success of local, regional and international policies laid down by the Sultan.

Right from the first day of the Omani Renaissance, the Sultan reinforced the pillars of national unity as a solid base from which support the efforts of domestic development. He set up and upgraded the edifices of justice and the ‘State of Law and Institutions’ so that citizens and residents enjoy security, with all rights guaranteed under the rule of law. 

The Sultan also laid down the foundations of a foreign policy that is based on extending bridges of friendship, confidence, credibility and clarity when dealing with all brethren and friends, in all events and under all circumstances. In its relations with brotherly and friendly countries, Oman’s foreign policy sticks to specific, clear-cut, permanent and declared principles.

This policy had a strong impact and a tangible effect in tackling various issues and enabled Oman to maintain its dignified status and play a positive role in the international arena, acting as an active contributor to the good of the people of this region and the surrounding world. 

Thanks to the tradition of peace advocated by Sultan Qaboos, Oman has been able to establish relations of fraternity, friendship and cooperation with all countries of the world. Oman has been keen on developing these relations in all fields to optimize benefits and serve its own interests, as well as the interests of other countries. 

The Sultanate is one of the countries that endorse the principles of dialogue and negotiations for resolving disputes by peaceful means on the basis of mutual respect and adherence to the International Law. Oman also adopts the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries, cooperation among countries, achievement of common interests and good neighborliness. 

In all events and in the local and international arena, Oman believes that every problem has a solution if there exists a strong will and if efforts and interests meet on this common ground, because nations yearn to peace, understanding and co-existence in accordance with the motto ‘neither afflict harm nor inflict harm’. 

Thanks to these policies and stands that are distinguished for their credibility, the Sultan has gained the respect of leaders of countries in the region and the world at large. This respect also influenced Oman’s relations with brethren and friends. 

The Sultanate, being a haven for peace and security, has been an active player in every effort to promote the region’s peace and stability. Towards this goal, the Sultanate received the President of Iran, the Emir of Kuwait, the King of Jordan and the Palestinian President.

While advocating peace and working to achieve stability for the peoples of the region, the Sultanate has also been keen on building its own armed forces and developing its capabilities to safeguard its national territories and the gains of its renaissance. 

The Sultan’s Armed Forces, the Royal Guard of Oman, the (ROP) and other security apparatuses have proved their ability to secure every inch of Oman’s territory and safeguard the country’s achievements. These armed forces are indeed a pride for the Omani modern renaissance and they serve as a basic pillar of the country’s march of growth.

The Sultan accords deep attention to the development of the armed forces on a regular basis, both in terms of personnel training and armament. Thus the Armed Forces have become an integrate unit of defence that espouses science and technology and is much renowned for its world-class efficiency and combat ability.

As part of the Royal Air Force of Oman’s development plan, this year witnessed the launch of the first set of Typhoon fighter aircraft and Hawk training aircraft. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy of Oman marked the commissioning of Khasab and Al Nasir, the last two vessels in a shipbuilding project known as Ouffoq.

The domestic development march, as envisaged by Sultan Qaboos, covers all corners of the Sultanate on the basis of positive participation of all Omani citizens in the nation building process. The Sultan ordered that all citizens, wherever they might be, shall share the fruits of the modern renaissance and shall be enabled to utilize all their capabilities to develop the modern state which, in turn, shall be capable of achieving their interests.

The concept of "Royal attention to the Omani citizen" constitutes a principle that warrants everyone’s participation in nation building programs, based on justice and equal opportunities. This principle was particularly evident in the Sultan’s call to utilize the potential and upgrade the skills of young people through proper education and training so that they could shoulder their national responsibilities, a call reiterated by the Sultan when he presided over a meeting of the Council of Ministers on May 23, 2017.

Over the past 47 years of the Omani Renaissance, the plans and programs of domestic development have been drawn out to achieve the Royal directives that stem from the Sultan’s conviction in the fact that "nations cannot rise except through the efforts of the citizen who is the most important asset of the nation and the prime aim of its development". In many occasions, the Sultan reiterated that "development can be worthy of success only as far as it is able to achieve a decent life to individuals and society."

Today, it is laudable that the outcomes of decades of development have achieved gigantic milestones in a variety of domains, including education, health, roads, electricity and water, telecommunications and other services that are extended to all governorates of the Sultanate without discrimination and wherever citizens might be. "Justice" and "balance" have been two salient features of Oman’s renaissance march over the past years.

When he presided over the cabinet meeting last May, the Sultan said he was "quite satisfied" with the country’s comprehensive development march "in terms of growth rates that took into account both the economic and social dimensions". He praised the efforts undertaken by the government and different institutions of the state "to maintain the level of services rendered to citizens". In particular, he expressed his appreciation for efforts to upgrade policies of economic diversification. He also thanked Omani citizens for their cooperation and their role in the success of development programs, despite the adverse developments in the world today.

The government has adopted a new national program called "Tanfeedh" (=execution), which is the mainstay of the 9th Five Year Plan (2016-2020). This program reflects the government’s awareness of the availability of plenty of resources that can serve as an additional source of income from the sectors of tourism, agriculture and fisheries and minerals which altogether constitute the cornerstone of economic diversification.

Tanfeedh, which encompasses the Sultanate’s vision towards economic diversification, aims to draft detailed plans that are measurable and executable. In its first phase it covers the sectors of tourism, converting industries and logistic services, in addition to supporting ‘enablers’ like the financing sector and the labour market in general. In its second phase, the program deals with the sectors of fisheries and mining.

These steps will eventually empower the Sultanate and enable it to increase the percentage of investments directed to projects of economic revenue, in addition to facilitating the geographical distribution of investments to benefit all governorates. The new program will also help double per capita income, maintain a balance between revenues and services and provide suitable conditions for the relaunch of the economy with a view to avoiding dependence on one non-renewable source of income and enhancing sustainable development. 

Despite the slump in oil prices, Oman financial and economic position is generally stable. The government is going ahead with its developmental programs, while at the same time furnishing an attractive environment for investments, encouraging investors, fostering partnership with the private sector, supporting small and medium industries and enhancing Oman’s rating in ‘competitive indicators’. A special ministerial committee has been formed and it recommended the establishment of a national office to raise the standard of competitiveness after studying regional and international experiences. This office is affiliated to the National Centre for Statistics and Information.

In particular, Oman seeks to increase the contribution of the tourism sector to the GDP by the year 2040. The Omani Tourism Strategy 2016-2040 aims to promote the Sultanate’s status in the international arena. It aims to put Oman on track to transformation into a global destination of hospitality, besides raising the value of natural and cultural landmarks making them sustainable and realizing economic and social benefits from them. In addition, the new strategy aims to generate revenues to preserve the heritage and protect the environment.

To better utilize its strategic location and its vicinity to maritime navigation routes and international trade lines and, as part of its efforts to diversify sources of national income, Oman plans to be a pioneer in the field of transport and communications and become among the top 10 world countries in logistic performance by the year 2040. 

The Sultanate’s general strategy in the ports sector focuses on continuous expansion of the capacity of these ports and their potential in handling goods of different types and sizes. It seeks to increase its competitiveness through the construction and deepening of quays which will be equipped to receive all types of vessels and they will be provided with basic services and equipment. This goes hand-in-hand with the development of other sectors: industrial activities, commercial units and free zones that can be incorporated in these ports. 

In the transport and communications sector, the Special Economic Zone in Duqm forms a basic pillar and an economic hub capable of making the Sultanate an international logistics centre in the near future. This zone complements other Omani ports and fits perfectly with road networks, railways and the new airports.

As Sultan Qaboos said during celebrations marking the 22nd National Day, Oman’s progress and prosperity has been the main objective of every Omani citizen whose heart beats with loyalty to the homeland, but this objective can only be achieved through hard work, wise planning and enlightened vision which anticipates the challenges of the future and prepares to address them with knowledge and renewable expertise.

With the march of Oman’s Renaissance entering its 48th year in full confidence and looking forward to a bright future, the Sultanate is planning to carry out many major projects meant to diversify the economy, develop sources of revenues and increase employment opportunities for the national manpower. These include oil refining and petrochemical projects, industrial, tourism and fisheries projects in Duqm that are expected to be completed in 2019. Current projects under way include ORPIC’s projects in the petrochemicals sector, tourism projects in Ras al Hadd, Muscat, South Batinah and Dhofar, in addition to food security projects, fishing jetties, aquaculture and projects in the logistics sector.

Source: BNA