‘Great opportunity for an expat’

Abdul Latheef, MD of Badr al Samaa Group of Hospitals, promises to position Oman as a global player if elected to the OCCI board

Abdul Latheef, managing director of Badr al Samaa Group of Hospitals, who is contesting the upcoming elections to the board of Oman Chamber of Commerce & Industry (OCCI), hopes to be instrumental in making the expatriate business community in Oman an integral part and a catalyst in Oman Vision 2040 if elected.

Latheef, who has three decades of experience in the healthcare industry in Oman and the GCC, besides owning businesses in travel, real estate, education, construction, retailing

and hospitality, firmly believes that allowing representation of the expat community is a historical and important step taken by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion. Membership to the OCCI board comes with significant opportunities and responsibilities to support the

expat business community in meaningful ways and to become a partner in the economic growth of Oman, Latheef affirms.

His election manifesto lists representing the expat business community, facilitating and framing policies and streamlining businesses, overcoming economic

challenges, keeping pace with regional and international business developments, and positioning Oman as a global player.

He will also strive for synergy between the public and private sectors, establish more public-private partner

ships to undertake and accomplish projects of national importance, and contribute towards meeting the national agenda laid down in Oman Vision 2040,

Latheef responded to Muscat Daily’s questions on what he proposes to do if elected to the OCCI board.

What initiatives for community welfare and a safe and healthy environment do you have in mind? Will these be carried out with the help of other corporates?

This is the first time an opportunity has been given to an expat and I wish to express my sincere gratitude to His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik and the Government of Oman for involving expats in this prestigious body.

I believe each one of us deserves the best quality healthcare and it will be my responsibility to take healthcare services to every part of Oman. We have already made good progress in this direction. Wherever workable, I will undertake public-private partnership projects and work closely with the Ministry of Health to achieve targets listed in Vision 2040.

My main focus will be health education, health awareness, preventive screening and non-communicable disease surveillance and control. Preventive health

screening by conducting regular health screening and holding health awareness talks will be on the 'to-do' list.

Are there any specific concerns regarding ease of doing business in Oman which need immediate attention? What efforts will you take to solve these?

In the past, many policy changes and progressive plans have been put in place which ensured a gradual improvement in Oman’s ranking in ease of doing business. Oman’s regulatory environment is conducive to business operations. However, I will have discussions with all stakeholders. I will understand the challenges faced by them and prepare recommendations accordingly and

work on streamlining these issues.

Does the private sector’s participation in healthcare in Oman need further streamlining so that more private players from other countries enter the market?

The targets set under Vision 2040 for more super specialised healthcare services and establishing medical in

stitutes and universities is a huge responsibility for us. The Ministry of Health, with its advanced policies, is ensuring safe healthcare practices, and with the introduc

tion of international quality accreditations like JCI (USA) and ACHSI (Australia), the quality of service delivery has reached international benchmarks.

Quality of services is well taken care of. We need to focus more on expansion of services, introduction of tertiary care modalities, and ensure patients in Oman are not compelled to seek medical care aboard. In this context, I believe everyone is welcome to join hands in the

projects aimed at meeting Vision 2040. I’ll accept suggestions and recommendations from representations of

every private healthcare provider and work in the best interest of the industry.

Would you initiate any measures to build trust in the existing medical facilities (government/private) in Oman to reduce medical tourism to other countries?

Definitely. We need to do a study to understand the reasons, other than long waiting time and unavailability of some services in the private healthcare sector, behind patients travelling aboard for medical tourism. More awareness needs to be raised about the abilities

of our healthcare system, and along with it, major focus needs to be put on expansion and advancement of services.

Is there a need for the expat business community to play a bigger role in Oman Vision 2040? Which areas need greater private participation?

There are major businesses run by expats in the sultanate. We should focus on diversification into other growing sectors and businesses. Vision 2040 can be

achieved as a team, and equal responsibility lies on the expat business community. We should diversify and focus on industries like manufacturing, education, healthcare, environment and technology.