The Sultanate of Oman has launched several initiatives to develop the communications and information technology sector, including in the areas of legislation, infrastructure development, education, training, scientific research, and innovation, said Dr Ali bin Amer al Shidhani, Undersecretary for Communications and Information Technology.
The undersecretary said during an interaction that a road map has been prepared for the digital economy, which has started contributing in a big way to the global GDP.
He said the National Program for the Digital Economy ‘Jadara’, in line with the Vision 2040 vision will be presented soon and the ministry is also working on a national digital portal, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and space.
“The contribution of the digital economy to the GDP is relatively low compared to other countries in the region and the rest of the world. The digital economy program is aimed at maximizing this contribution to the national economy,” he said.
Al Shidhani said the technology companies should target the global market because it is full of opportunities and the pandemic helped in the emergence of several technology companies.
Eng Said bin Abdullah al Mantheri, CEO of Oman Communications and Information Technology Group (OCITG), said that technology graduates must be open-minded when studying and must have the entrepreneurial capabilities to meet the needs of the competitive labor market.
He said the Oman Technology Fund has been investing in special venture capital funds.
The Artificial Intelligence projects will include plans to launch the parcel delivery service using drones.
It may be noted that the Ministry of Transport Communications and Information Technology is also working on the national strategies for the space sector, which include a Space Club project, Open Satellites Data Platform and ‘space corner’ at Children’s Museum.
