Basic Informations

HEAD OF STATE: His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said (since 1970)

AREA: 309,500 sq. km.

NEIGHBOURING COUNTRIES:
Yemen Arab Republic, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

POPULATION: 2,331,391 (2003 Census).
The official language is Arabic. Islam is the official religion, but other religions are tolerated.

CAPITAL: Muscat

MAJOR CITIES: Salalah, Nizwa, Sur, Sohar

CURRENCY: Rial Omani (OR) of 1,000 baizas = US$2.58

NATIONAL DAY: 18th November

LIFE EXPECTANCY: 73.8 years

POPULATION GROWTH RATE: 2% (2003)
POPULATION DENSITY: 7.5

GOVERNMENT: A bicameral system.
The Council of Oman consists of the Consultation Council and the State Council.
The Consultation members are elected by the Omani citizens, and the State Council members are appointed by HM The Sultan.


TIME DIFFERENCE: GMT + 4 hours

OMAN – Tradition and modernity

Oman lies at the eastern corner of the Arabian peninsula. Sharjah and Fujairah (UAE) separate the main part of Oman from the northernmost part of the state, a peninsula (Musandam) extending into the Strait of Hormuz. It is for many Westerners a country waiting to be discovered.

Historically Omanis were seafarers and traders who dominated regional commodity trading in the Indian Ocean, East Africa and the Arabian Gulf. There were thus a succession of migrations which saw the growth of settlements along some parts of the East African coast.

Prior to the coming on stream of oil in 1964, the country was dependent on the agricultural sector and on fishing activities. In 1970, Oman had just 3 kms of asphalted roads. Asking a 50-year old Omani man to describe his country in the 1960s, the answer was simply: “There was nothing …”.

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, the son of Sultan Said, was aware of his father’s conservatism so he took over power in 1970. Since that time His Majesty has strived to modernize his country and oil revenues have given him the opportunity to develop a modern infrastructure of roads, ports and airports, as well as first-class telecommunications and broadcasting systems. Some 50 hospitals have been opened throughout the country and educational programmes for all ages successfully implemented.

Of course oil reserves will be exhausted one day and the country is therefore diversifying its economy, especially in the field of tourism. Among the Gulf states, Oman has many advantages for developing tourism: its climate, varied scenery, archaeological and historical remains, as well as its friendly people. With its high standard of hotel accommodation, it can satisfy even the most demanding travellers.

WOMEN

These days the high status Omani women enjoy is reflected in the priority accorded to them in the country’s development plans. According to the 2003 Census, 49% of the population of the Sultanate are women, many of whom are below the age of 18 and have enjoyed the same educational opportunities as boys of a similar age.

The Personal Status Law guarantees Omani women equal rights in both education and employment.

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has repeatedly called upon the female population to lend their full support to the continuing the development of their country. An example of this is His Majesty’s speech on the occasion of the opening of the Second Term of the Consultation Council (Majlis a’Shura) in December 1994: “We call upon Omani women everywhere, in the villages and cities, in both urban and Bedu communities, in the hills and mountains, to roll up their sleeves and contribute to the process of economic and social development. We have great faith in the educated young Omani women to work devotedly..”. They have responded by seeking and securing jobs from government minister to supermarket check-out assistant.

Government

Women have the right to vote and run for office in Consultation Council elections which are held every 4 years, e.g. in the 5th 2003 elections there were 584 candidates and 16 women were among them representing various regions of the Sultanate. Two were then elected. Additionally, His Majesty has appointed 9 women to serve on the Council of State (Majlis a’Dawla) for a 4-year term of office.

The number of women holding senior positions has risen steadily – on 5th March 2003 Aisha al Siyabia was appointed as President of the Public Authority for Craft Industries, with the rank of Minister. On 8th March 2004 Dr Rawiyah bint Saud al Busaidiyah was promoted to become Minister of Higher Education, making her the first female minister with portfolio in Oman’s history. These were followed on 9th June 2004 when Royal Decree N. 61/2004 established a Ministry of Tourism and named a woman, Rajiha bint Abdulamir to be its Minister. Then on 22nd October 2004 Dr Sharifa bint Khalfan Al Yahya-eyah, a university professor, was appointed to take over the Ministry of Social Development.

Oman is rightly proud to have been the first Arab country to appoint a woman to head an overseas Embassy when Khadija al Lawatia was appointed the Sultanate’s Ambassador to the Netherlands and at  the end of 2005 , Hanina Bint Sultan al-Maghiria is to be Oman's Ambassador in Washington. In 2003 an Omani woman was appointed to head the United Nations Information Centre, based in Geneva, Switzerland, with authority over an international network of 77 information centres and more than 300 staff.

Women are also making strides in the legal profession with 5 ladies appointed as Deputy Attorneys-General in May 2004.

Employment

Statistics show that Omani women in the Civil Service account for 3l% of the total personnel, 18% of the private sector’s employees registered with the Public Authority for Social Insurance are women, as well as 56% of teaching positions at government schools are taken by women.

Education

In higher education, female students make up 61% of students studying at education colleges, 26% at the Sharia and Law College, while at Sultan Qaboos University girls represent 55% of students admitted at diploma level, 50% at degree level and 35% admitted for postgraduate studies.

Omani Women’s Associations (OWAs)
The OWA provides a channel for voluntary work and child welfare services, and 39 branches with 2,738 members can be found throughout Oman.Omani women are encouraged to become involved in voluntary social work and to contribute to the development of their communities. This is in addition to around 3,000 female volunteers in the UNICEF programmes.

Recreation
In 1994 Oman established national women’s teams in volleyball, basketball, tennis, table tennis and several other sports. There are also both government and privately-run centres around the Sultanate which encourage women to preserve their national heritage by teaching traditional crafts and skills. These centres also provide kindergartens, information programmes and field visits, as well as giving the ladies opportunities to take part in conferences and tourism fairs abroad.

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