An ‘Olive Corridor’ in Al Jabal Al Akhdhar

Al Jabal Al Akhdhar is rich in many things. It has everything for tourists — from climate to vegetation and if anyone has an interest in history and has good driving skills, he can drive down to ancient establishments of the mountainous establishment, which are as old as 500 years or even more.

Amid all these natural settings, there is someone passionately associated with Al Jabal Al Akhdhar. Even if he wants to make some nice earnings from his commercial venture, he does it passionately to preserve the local vegetation of olives.

Nasser bin Mansour al Zakwani is developing an ‘Olive Corridor’ adjacent to his small yet attractive hospitality setup, which he claims to be the only one exclusively run by an Omani.

“I am born and brought up in Al Jabal Al Akhdhar. I have seen all the developments here. From olden times, the local villagers grow many kinds of fruits and vegetables. They used to survive on them when access to the mountain was difficult, and people had to depend on local agriculture products,” said Nasser as an introduction to his love for olives and his plan to develop the ‘Olive Corridor’ in a big way.

“When I started my hospitality business here and opened a hotel, I thought of doing landscaping with olive trees.

Initially, I did it internally, but after seeing the good results kept on expanding. Today it has taken the shape of an ‘Olive Corridor’,” he says. Still, it needs expansion, he quips.

Nasser has plans to develop the Olive Corridor in a big way so that it becomes an attraction for the visitors of Jabal Akhdar and adds value to his hotel named Grand Nizwa. He has plans to add other attractions also around it, which can fetch him some revenue to make his venture sustainable.

A group of European tourists appreciated Nasser’s Olive Corridor idea and called it unique, as olive is full of nutrition and its tree looks wide and lush green offering natural shade to the visitors.

Nicola, Manika Naasz, Michel, and Moll John made a mixed group of tourists from Germany and France. In full appreciation of Nasser’s idea of Olive Corridor, they assured him to come back again and see it when it is fully developed.