The College of Economics and Political Science organised the national forum titled “Empowering Oman from Within: Local Content for Sustainable Growth.” The event was held under the patronage of His Highness Sayyid Dr. Faris bin Turki Al Said, Assistant Professor in the Department of Marketing, at the Conference Hall.
The forum comes at a timely moment to reinforce the importance of local content within Oman’s developmental planning framework. By adopting an Environmental, Social, Economic and Governance (ESEG) perspective, the forum aims to stimulate structured dialogue on how to integrate local content more effectively into sustainability agendas, institutional development, and strategic partnerships, in support of achieving Oman Vision 2040.
In his opening remarks, Dr. Al-Mukhtar bin Saif Al-Abri, Dean of the College, highlighted the significance of local content, which stands as one of the main pillars of sustainable economic growth. He noted that the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik has accorded special attention to this concept, recognising the vital role of domestic expenditure as a key driver of economic development, a means of strengthening national supply chains, and a catalyst for empowering small and medium enterprises, thus contributing to the building of a diversified and sustainable economy.
Dr. Al-Abri added that SQU, and particularly the College of Economics and Political Science, has placed strong emphasis on supporting the local content agenda. In collaboration with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), the College launched a postgraduate programme in Business Administration specialising in Local Content, which this year celebrates the graduation of its first cohort, a step that embodies SQU’s commitment to national development and the cultivation of specialised talent. Faculty members have also been actively involved in various national initiatives related to local content and have contributed through research and specialised studies to analysing the impact of local content on the competitiveness and sustainability of the national economy.
This forum builds on those efforts by providing a national platform for dialogue and the exchange of expertise among academics, specialists, decision-makers, and representatives from both the public and private sectors, to discuss progress, identify challenges, and propose innovative ideas and insights that enhance the economic, social and environmental impact of local content.
The programme featured a keynote address delivered by Christopher MacDonald, Managing Director of Awendio Solaris Oman, in which he outlined the key objectives for strengthening local content creation in the oil and gas sector. These include increasing the local sourcing of goods and sub-contracted services, expanding opportunities for Omani service providers, advancing Omanisation across the workflow, and enhancing the skills of the national workforce through specialised training programmes. He also stressed the importance of developing national capabilities in education, research and development, and called for support to establish advanced institutions dedicated to training, education and scientific research, alongside strengthening the competitiveness of local suppliers and SMEs. MacDonald further emphasised the need for sectors and foreign investors to contribute to building a sustainable ecosystem within their respective fields, while proactively seeking cross-sector collaboration. He presented practical models and examples demonstrating effective approaches to training, reskilling and upskilling.
The forum also featured three panel discussions exploring the topic from different dimensions: the economic and social dimension, the governance and accountability dimension, and the environmental and sustainability dimension.
In addition, an exhibition of research posters presented by master’s students and faculty members showcased innovative perspectives and applications in the field of local content, supporting the next phase of implementing the national policy in this area.