Sultanate’s port operations fastest in the world: UN body

Oman’s ports have been recognised by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as No 1 in the world in terms of the speed of container handling.

According to UNCTAD Annual Index 2020, issued recently about last year’s development of maritime transport, container vessels only stay in the sultanate’s ports for an average of 12.5 hours – including all entry, exit, loading, and unloading operations.

As per an Oman News Agency report, this accomplishment caps the efforts undertaken by Asyad Group and partners in the public and private sectors to facilitate procedures in ports and introduce many worldclass electronic solutions in handling operations.

It also comes in implementation of the National Logistics Strategy 2040 aimed to make Oman a global logistics hub, notably by opening new direct maritime routes and forging alliances with international maritime firms to provide direct connection with Omani ports.

The UNCTAD report affirmed that Oman, Poland and the UAE are the most competent in handling containers, benefiting from a massive stock of transient goods that engage the three countries’ main stations as active destinations for private international operators.

The report said that the sultanate also benefited from electronic procedures devised and endorsed prior to outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

This includes pre-dated electronic clearance in business operations, electronic processing of cargo data 48 hours in advance and the expansion of electronic services for the exchange of documents and payments.

Omani ports’ rating as the fastest in container handling is considered an international recognition of the sultanate’s global position in this type of service.

Asyad Group connects the sultanate’s ports with regional and international counterparts as a measure to speed up direct import.

The group supports this connectivity with a promotional campaign to encourage direct international liners to utilise the incentives offered by Omani ports.

Asyad puts the capabilities of the Omani ports at the service of merchants, importers and exporters.

It provides all sorts of shipping solutions for the transport of different types of commodities and goods from the country of origin. It also operates an advanced customs clearance system in the sultanate’s ports to clear 90 per cent of goods within the first hour of arrival of the vessel, while the remaining 20 per cent are cleared onboard the vessels at sea.