DUBAI: More than 26,000 Omanis have found jobs as part of the country’s major recruitment drive aimed at tackling high unemployment numbers among locals, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Manpower (MoM), local daily Times of Oman reported.
The MoM revealed that 26,103 citizens had been employed in the private and public sectors.
According to the announcement, 17,656 males were employed in comparison to 8,447 females since the drive began in December.
There are 4.5 million people living in Oman, of which 2.4 million are Omani.
The Omanization drive is part of a government’s push to recruit more of its citizens, a similar push is underway across the GCC where countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have also been trying to increase the number of locals in employment.
Earlier this year, expat workers in the country faced a six-month visa ban across 87 industries, including media, engineering, marketing and sales, accounting and finance, IT, insurance, technicians, administration and HR.
The Oman government announced last month that the ban would remain in place and that it was considering adding more profession, adding that Omanis should always be the first choice for jobs in the country.
More than 26,000 Omani citizens employed in Omanization push
More than 26,000 Omani citizens employed in Omanization push
Closing Bell: Saudi main index closes in red at 11,167
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index dipped on Wednesday, losing 46.43 points, or 0.41 percent, to close at 11,167.54.
The total trading turnover of the benchmark index was SR4.88 billion ($1.30 billion), as 66 of the listed stocks advanced, while 192 retreated.
The MSCI Tadawul Index decreased, down 5.52 points, or 0.37 percent, to close at 1,506.55.
The Kingdom’s parallel market Nomu lost 153.40 points, or 0.65 percent, to close at 23,486.52. This comes as 32 of the listed stocks advanced, while 31 retreated.
The best-performing stock was Tourism Enterprise Co., with its share price surging 9.95 percent to SR14.36.
Other top performers included Mobile Telecommunication Co., Saudi Arabia, which saw its share price rise by 5.32 percent to SR11.48, and Al Masar Al Shamil Education Co., which saw a 4.86 percent increase to SR22.89.
On the downside, Almoosa Health Co. was the day’s weakest performer, with its share price falling 4.81 percent to SR150.40.
Dallah Healthcare Co. fell 3.81 percent to SR113.50, while Saudi Research and Media Group dropped 3.44 percent to SR100.90.
On the corporate front, Arabian Plastic Industrial Co. has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with K. K. Nag to explore the establishment of a specialized manufacturing facility for expanded polypropylene products.
According to a Tadawul statement, the agreement sets out initial mutual obligations and rights between the two parties as part of APICO’s broader expansion strategy to increase production capacity and meet rising industrial demand.
The company’s share price rose 1.21 percent to SR43.52 on the parallel market.
