Pact signed to boost education in PDO concession area

Muscat, April 14 - Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Higher Education to sponsor the training of a further 50 students as teachers so they can return to work in schools in their local towns and villages. The move is part of the Tawteen initiative launched three years ago with the aim of reducing teacher turnover and consolidating local education systems in some of the more remote parts of the Sultanate.

By the end of the year, the total number of students enrolled in the Tawteen programme will be 369, of which 175 are sponsored by PDO.

PDO External Affairs and Value Creation Director Abdul-Amir Abdul-Hussein al Ajmi signed the MoU to further support the initiative with Dr Abdullah Mohammed al Sarmi, the Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), and Saud Salim al Balushi, the Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Education.

Saud al Balushi said: “Tawteen programme for teaching staff in remote villages is one of the strategic initiatives adopted by the Ministry to provide Omani teachers in remote villages. It contributes to the stability of teaching staff and the development and improvement of the educational process as well as providing job opportunities in these villages.”

PDO also signed another MoU with Dr Abdullah al Sarmi to support a further 150 students under its Community Scholarship Programme (CSP). This gives students from PDO’s concession area the freedom to choose any undergraduate programme that suits their interests and provides a monthly allowance to support them for five years up to Bachelor degree level.

Dr Abdullah al Sarmi said: “This MoU confirms the importance of partnership and integration between the public and private sectors. The MoU combined with the Tawteen teacher training scheme and in addition to the many other efforts of support, show PDO’s social responsibility commitment towards the community and its interest to support the Omani people.”