Inside Stories to look at the role of micro-industries

MUSCAT: Micro-manufacturing will be the topic of discussion at the Inside Stories which will be held on September 26.

Representing 9.3 per cent of the country’s GDP manufacturing is at the heart of Oman’s ambitious economy, employing more than 38,000 people. This month’s Inside Stories is scheduled to be held at 7:00pm on Tuesday, September 26 at the Public Authority for Civil Aviation Training Centre in Al Hail North, Muscat.

From car batteries, AC units, confectionery, footwear, marble kitchen tops to tomato paste, the products manufactured in the Sultanate are diverse and export- ed to 135 countries. Breathing new life into Oman’s manufacturing sector is the growth of niche micro-manufacturers.

These small companies typically employ fewer than 10 workers and include metal fabricators, silversmiths, bakers, graphic designers, organic soap makers, furniture builders, chocolatiers to seamstresses.

Though small in size, many of these hi-tech urban micro-manufacturers are becoming an economic force to be reckoned with, radically altering the landscape of how things get made in Oman.

Global interconnectedness and technological advances, par- ticularly in digital fabrication are changing the face of Omani manufacturing. Today, the sector requires less staff, less investment, less space and is much easier to manage. What was once done with 20 machines and 50 people can now be done with two or three machines and minimum staff.

“Micro-manufacturing is nothing new,” points out Taleb Al Makhmari, Director General, Marketing and Media at Ithraa, Oman’s inward investment and export development agency, and organiser of the monthly Inside Stories initiative.