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MUSCAT, SEPT 24 – Visa restrictions imposed by the government on a number of professions as part of its Omanisation policy has increased job opportunities for citizens. This is evident from the continuous fall in the number of expatriate workers in several sectors in the recent past.
This is evident from the continuous fall in the number of expatriate workers in several sectors.
According to figures released by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the number of expat workers in the construction sector has registered a fall of 11.5 per cent at 514,384 in August this year.
As many as 47,597 expatriate workers in the sector lost their jobs in the first eight months of 2019 in the Sultanate paving way for hundreds of the nationals to get those jobs.
In the manufacturing sector, the number of expat workers has been reduced to 200,302 with 4.8 per cent fall as 6,561 workers left the country.
Foreign workers in electricity, gas, steam and air-conditions supply segments have now been reduced to a total of 992 in August this year, the NCSI data shows.
Agriculture and fishing registered a massive 16.3 per cent drop during the period to reach 74,684 expat workers, the mining and quarrying sector witnessed a fall of 5.6 per cent to reach 17,025 workers.
Water supply, sewage, waste management and remediation activities witnessed 6.7 per cent to reach 5,219 workers, while accommodation and food service activities saw a marginal rise of 2.2 per cent during the eight-month period.
At the same time, the number of foreign workers in financial and insurance activities dropped by 3.7 per cent to reach 3,904 at the end of August from 4,033 at the end of December last year.
Similarly, expats in transport and storage shrank to 68,061 during the period from 69,477 registering 3.2 per cent fall.
The sectoral composition of the employment in the private sector shows that the construction sector employed the largest number of both Omani and expatriate workforce in 2018 with a share of 23.6 per cent and 32.5 per cent, respectively.
In a recent report by Central Bank of Oman quoting NCSI figures said that the share of Omanis in total employment in private sector inched up to 12.7 per cent in 2018 from 11.7 per cent a year ago.
“With the structural transformation that the Omani economy is undergoing, the private sector has been making significant progress and becoming the main recipient of workforce entrants,” the report said.
“With a ban on the hiring of expatriates in certain occupations, the employment to expatriates in the private sector dropped first time in the last few years, with a decline of 3.7 per cent during 2018,” the report said.
Occupations included in such ban are across numerous fields and include both junior and senior positions. It is worth noting that the government is aiming at Omanisation of more leadership positions in the private sector.
Additionally, the Ministry of Manpower has launched the National Leadership Development Programme ‘Itimad’ under which 500 mid-level Omani employees from the private sector will undergo tailored leadership training.
