Shared visions and interests on the agenda as Sultan Haitham of Oman visits Saudi Arabia
Sultan Haitham is scheduled to arrive in Saudi Arabia today for his first official visit abroad since he became the Ruler of Oman in January.
He is expected to meet King Salman, with discussions likely to focus on strengthening co-operation in a wide range of sectors, said Sayeed Al Saeed, Oman’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
The envoy spoke of “profound bilateral relations and concordance between the Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 and Oman’s Vision 2040”, the official Saudi Press Agency said.
Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 was announced in 2016 by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The project is a wide-ranging industrial strategy focused on diversifying government revenue across many sectors, including tourism and technology; and building economic resilience, green energy resources and digital government services.
In December, Prince Mohammed said the success of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 in its first five years was partly based on pragmatism in foreign relations.
“It is based on our interests,” Prince Mohammed said.
“The majority of investments have come through the fact that our interests have aligned with the international community.”
Oman’s Vision 2040, which was drawn up under the rule of the late Sultan Qaboos, also aims to advance many sectors of the economy.
The document outlines a plan to build a “diversified and sustainable national economy; ensure fair distribution of development gains among governorates and protect the nation’s natural resources and unique environment”.
Both strategies also make the preservation of cultural identity, the environment and heritage a central part of their economic diversification plans.
Prince Mohammed has said that Vision 2030 aims to make Saudi Arabia “a tolerant country with Islam as its constitution and moderation as its method”.
Sultan Haitham has described how Oman’s Vision 2040 “builds on the principles of citizenship and genuine Omani identity to modernise the educational ecosystem, support scientific research and innovation and develop healthcare regulations and services”.
The visit takes place as both countries face the challenge of combating emerging strains of the coronavirus, including the Delta variant, which was identified in India in the spring.
Last week, Oman’s Health Ministry said that more than 22 per cent of the population had received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.
The percentage of Saudi citizens who had received at least one vaccine dose was approaching 55 per cent last week.
On Friday, Saudi Arabia’s Food and Drug Authority approved Moderna’s vaccine for use in the kingdom, the state news agency said, alongside the Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca vaccines in use.