Pact signed to drive entrepreneurship in downstream plastics

BUSINESS REPORTER

MUSCAT, FEB 28

The Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (Madayn) has signed a cooperation programme with Sohar University to enhance the partnership between public and private sectors and its contribution to the industrial sector, and explore coordination mechanism to promote entrepreneurship in the Sultanate of Oman. The agreement was signed by Hilal bin Hamad al Hasani, CEO of Madayn, and Dr Hamdan bin Sulaiman al Fazari, Acting Vice Chancellor of Sohar University.

The cooperation programme aims at exploring the developments in plastic technologies in line with the objectives of both sides by providing an industrial base for plastic industries in Suhar with the aim of achieving the added value of high-volume production of plastic raw materials in Oman, and thus contribute to providing tech support and industrial solutions to the existing companies, encouraging investments in plastic manufacturing, and providing more job opportunities.

The cooperation programme also aims at planning and developing a technical training programme for the workforce of factories and companies based in the industrial cities of Madayn within the specialisations and technical capabilities available in Sohar University and Industrial Innovation Academy.

As per the agreement, Madayn will promote Intaj Suhar – the industrial innovation hub based at Sohar University – through encouraging the companies in the industrial cities to benefit from the available manufacturing and R&D services. Madayn also endeavours to facilitate access to training opportunities for undergraduate students at Sohar University in the companies investing in the industrial cities.

Madayn shall also encourage these companies to offer scholarships for general diploma graduates to pursue undergraduate and postgraduate studies that meet the employment requirements of the companies and factories. Moreover, Madayn officials will take part in advisory boards at Sohar University with the objective of expertise exchange and contribution to the development of academic programmes in line with the needs of the labour market.