Hamad bin Khamis Al Amri, the Manpower Ministry’s Under-secretary for Labour Affairs, said changes in the Labour Law coupled with an increase in monthly training allowance offered by the government from RO50 to RO150 had created an “encouraging environment” in private establishments across the country.
More and more nationals were now being hired and trained by local companies, he pointed out.
A further boost was the recent government decision to allow free movement of employees between the public and private sectors, he added.
Amri was speaking to reporters after the ministry concluded agreements with local institutes to train 1,235 young Omanis in various specialisations for jobs in private firms. The 39 deals, worth a total RO3.5 million, were signed by Manpower Minister Shaikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Bakri with heads of the institutes.
They will be trained in administration, art and craft, travel and tourism and seaport and road supervision, and as mechanics, hairdressers and beauticians and salesmen.
The training will last between six and nine months.
Amri urged the country’s youth to take advantage of training and employment programmes drawn up by the ministry in cooperation with the private sector.
Answering a question on budgets allocated for training and the institutes chosen, he explained that the ministry was still following the “old system of referring all training quotations to the Tender Board for approval.”
