Oman targets contribution of digital economy to gdp at 10%

Oman looks at 4IR with passion and positivity to provide us all with wider horizons and broader opportunities to achieve high growth rates of development and prosperity Dr Nasser bin rashid al Mawali

Oman seeks to raise the contribution of the digital economy to its GDP to ten per cent and increase the share of information technology in the digital economy to 30-35 per cent by 2040, according to H E Dr Nasser bin Rashid al Mawali, Undersecretary in the Ministry of Economy.

During a virtual seminar on future skills to keep pace with the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), held by the National Employment Programme in cooperation with the Ministry of

Economy, last week, H E Mawali said the World Economic Forum estimates the 4IR to create 133mn new jobs by 2022.

“Oman seeks to raise the contribution of the digital economy to ten per cent of the GDP within the Oman Vision 2040 goals, through a strategic direction that aims to achieve an increase in economic contribution from the digital economy by an estimated

50 per cent every five years. The increase in the share of information technology is estimated to increase by five per cent every five years,” he said.

According to the digital economy targets in Oman Vision 2040, the contribution of the digital economy to the GDP will

rise from around two per cent currently to three per cent by 2025, five per cent by 2030 and ten per cent by 2040.

H E Mawali added that Oman looks at 4IR with passion and

positivity “to provide us all with wider horizons and broader opportunities to achieve high growth rates of development and prosperity”.

The virtual seminar was held within the framework of joint cooperation programmes between the GCC states.

Oman seeks to develop a

prosperous digital economy that contributes to the national economy through the National Digital Economy Programme, which outlines a set of pillars, executive programmes and action plans, in

addition to medium and longterm targets aligned to Oman Vision 2040.

The first pillar is focused on accelerating the transition to a smart digital government by simplifying and re-engineering processes, providing proactive services and facilitating the digital integration of platforms and data between government entities to transform into a thriving digital economy.

The second pillar is to enhance the digital society by establishing an advanced digital infrastructure, developing technical competencies within society and encouraging digital innovation to transform into a thriving digital economy.

The third pillar focuses on digitalisation of business - digitalisa

tion of business processes and the introduction of emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things in all business operations of economic sectors end to end, with ecommerce playing an important part.

In October 2021, Oman launched the National Digital Economy Programme, through which the sultanate seeks to achieve several goals that con

tribute to building and developing a prosperous digital

economy, which responds to the requirements of the future.

The programme is founded on several main principles that will help achieve its objectives, including creating national industries in the digital economy, enhancing the local added value of the digital economy, creating sustainable income-generating opportunities that keep pace with technical developments, creating a strategic partnership with private sector institutions,

and digitally empowering the economic sectors included in the 10th Five-year Plan.

The programme targets six sectors – transport and logistics, tourism, manufacturing industries, fisheries, mining and education.