Part of Batinah Expressway to open in February-end

Asection of the Al Batinah Expressway from Barka to Al Rustaq will be opened by end of February this year, said the Minister of Transport and Communications Dr Ahmed bin Mohammed al Futaisi.

The opening of this section of the road was originally scheduled for end of 2016, but delayed due to unforeseen reasons.

The ministry has finalised the designs for the third and fourth lanes of the Burj Al Sahwa-Bidbid Road, but due to financial constraints it will not embark on new projects, he said

Meanwhile, the minister said 84 per cent of work in the first phase of Sur-Bidbid dual carriageway project, a part of which was opened for traffic in December, is complete.

On the GCC rail project, Al Futaisi said: “This is a vital project which will link all the GCC states. The Sultanate has sought to meet its obligations in terms of design. We would like to affirm that Oman will start the implementation stages in sync with the other GCC countries.”

Ahotline for protection of children (1100) was launched by the Ministry of Social Development on Wednesday. The hotline was launched in cooperation with the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority (TRA) at an event presided over by Shaikh Mohammed bin Said al Kalbani, Minister of Social Development. Dr Hamed al Rawahi, CEO of TRA, was also present. The 24/7 hotline will receive reports about child abuse cases resulting from negligence, deprivation, exploitation and discrimination. It will help orphans and other children suffering from loss of parents by transferring their issues to child committees all over the Sultanate. The committees, affiliated to the ministry, include trained social researchers and psychiatrists who can professionally intervene and protect the abused children.