OTC, Omran launch 4th ‘Women in Tourism’ initiative
At least 21,000 jobs are expected to come online in the tourism sector in little over a year as projected by Tanfeedh
Under the patronage of Dr Suad Mohamed Ali Sulaiman al Lawati, Vice-chairperson of the State Council, Oman Tourism College (OTC) is collaborating with Omran to organise the ‘4th Women in Tourism’ event in celebration of Omani Women’s Day. Renewing its annual platform, OTC will host ladies working in tourism to enrich local perspectives on the industry for aspiring female professionals, encouraging more women to explore the benefits entailed within a broad range of vibrant careers.
Held at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre on October 17, OTC will introduce a number of inspirational female voices from across the local tourism sector. The event builds on the success of previous networking and leadership programmes in providing women with an opportunity to learn about the achievements of women and celebrate their experience as public and private sector entities come together with OTC students and faculty members.
Wafa Saleh al Buraiki, OTC marketing lecturer and spokesperson of ‘Woman in Tourism’ said, “As Oman’s first specialised college for tourism and hospitality our objective is to ensure that ladies have a clear understanding of the opportunities that arise during a vibrant career in tourism.
Many jobs approach amidst the developments within this key economic sector with over 10 per cent of Oman’s entire population potentially employed — in tourism alone — with 500,000 jobs promised by 2040. Prior to that, it’s important to remember that 21,000 jobs are expected to come online in little over a year as projected by Tanfeedh. If the tourism experience is going to be what we are aspiring to then we require a drastic rise in the number of educated, well-trained, and qualified Omani candidates with the talents of women spearheading the development of a competitive national workforce”.
Aiming to engage the younger generation of Omani women, the event will be accompanied by an online campaign employing the hashtag #Womenintourism. The convention aims to raise awareness on the tourism industry as a promising career path by featuring success stories of Omani women who have already established themselves in one of Oman’s major future industries.
Al Buraiki added, “On a global scale the tourism industry has twice as many female professionals as it does males, largely because perceptions determine the industry as one which bestows valuable skills and attractive prospects for professionals working within. We are focused on delivering skilled and qualified young Omani women who can compete with expatriate professionals in the local market and remain at the forefront of an authentic and world-class tourism experience”.
Supported by Omran, the event will boost the company’s partnership with OTC as one of the subsidiaries in Omran’s portfolio. The event employs the framework of ‘The Global Goals’, a list of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) agreed by world leading authorities as critical focus areas for socio-economic progress. OTC and Omran will highlight global trends for the lady leaders’ network to shed light on a variety of topics, including women’s empowerment, learning, and gender equality, in addition to presenting success stories of Omani women working in tourism.
Commenting on Omran’s collaboration with OTC, Badriya al Siyabi, CSR Manager at Omran, said, “Whilst we strengthen the tourism sector’s infrastructure in-line with the vision of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, we must ensure that complementary investments are made to reinforce and enhance other core assets. Human capital is actively spearheading the development of the industry, and by working with OTC Omran demonstrates its commitment to enrich local talent. As the executive arm for tourism development, Omran has a strong portfolio of projects and investments with partners from across the industry, many of which have successful relationships working with Omani women”.
She added, “The tourism industry is vast and the initiative which has been spearheaded by OTC has already recognised and showcased many successful Omani professionals and the 4th edition will certainly grow and send a stronger message to support the government’s plans for diversification and realise a competent female workforce in the tourism sector”.
ON A GLOBAL SCALE THE TOURISM INDUSTRY HAS TWICE AS MANY FEMALE PROFESSIONALS AS IT DOES MALES, LARGELY BECAUSE PERCEPTIONS DETERMINE THE INDUSTRY AS ONE WHICH BESTOWS VALUABLE SKILLS AND ATTRACTIVE PROSPECTS FOR PROFESSIONALS WORKING WITHIN.