Muscat: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik held a meeting at Al Barakah Palace on Monday with representatives of the private sector, business people and owners of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups.
At the outset of the meeting, His Majesty the Sultan gave thanks and praise to the Almighty Allah for the abundant riches He bestowed on Oman, including the bounties of growth and stability. He prayed to the Almighty Allah to perpetuate these bounties on the nation and its citizens and grant them success in all their endeavours.
Then, His Majesty the Sultan reviewed the country's financial and economic performance. He commended the positive outcome of partnership between the government and the private sector, noting that this partnership contributed to the growth of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the steady improvement in the country's credit rating. This, he observed, would contribute to enhancing the confidence of businessmen and investors and the establishment of an attractive investment environment that would in turn revitalize various economic sectors.
In the context of his keenness to consolidate the public-private partnership, His Majesty the Sultan stressed the need to maintain the schedule of meetings with the private sector, to listen to the views of business people and discuss their proposals and the challenges facing the sector, with the prime aim of establishing an appropriate environment for enhancing investments and developing the local economy.
In this context, His Majesty the Sultan referred to the tangible rapprochement that the business people observed between the public and private sectors. He also lauded the periodic meetings held with representatives of the business community by the Council of Ministers’ Financial and Economic Committee, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion and the Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises Development (ASMED). The meetings, held in coordination with Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), aimed to maintain the pace of communication between the government and private sectors, address the challenges posed to businessmen, investors and owners of SMEs and devise suitable solutions.
His Majesty the Sultan explained that the employment of jobseekers takes centre stage among the government’s priorities. He underlined the role of the private sector in employment. He pointed out that the private sector shoulders this responsibility side by side with the government by providing employment opportunities for citizens and training them, making use of economic incentives, programmes and initiatives launched by the government to support the private sector.
His Majesty the Sultan stressed the importance of the banking sector as the cornerstone of modern economies and a key driver in enhancing economic growth and shaping the business environment. He urged the Omani banking sector to keep pace with global developments and financial policies that support the business environment and stimulate economic activity in the country in the forthcoming stage of growth.
His Majesty the Sultan also laid emphasis on the endorsement of the National Local Content Policy, which, he said, aims to promote the competitiveness of the national economy and boost its growth. In this context, His Majesty stressed the importance of the private sector’s contribution to the success of this policy, notably by localizing industries and by giving priority to local products in procurements and tenders. This would in turn help generate employment opportunities for citizens, diminish dependence on imports, upgrade the volume of exports and augment the value of the GDP.
In this context, His Majesty the Sultan underscored the importance of the private sector’s taking steps to develop locally-made products and improve their quality so that they could become the customers’ preferred choice and compete in global markets.
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