The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment..

GRD Journals- Global Research and Development Journal for Engineering | Volume 4 | Issue 11 | October 2019 ISSN: 2455-5703

The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development Dr. H. K. S. Kumar Chunduri Associate Director Department of Faculty Development and RCI Management Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, India

Abstract In Middle East, Sultanate of Oman was one of the first countries to pursue sustainable development. The Omani government has worked for and is working since the last 40 years to transform lifestyles along new lines and principles. The success of this “Sustainable Development” applauded as a strategy and was recognized by the 2010 UN Human Development Report. Strong political commitment is needed to lead societies towards sustainability. But making this commitment starts with each one of the citizens, with right attitudes and behaviors. These can only happen through education. We need to educate today the chemists, engineers and manufacturers that the world needs for tomorrow. More fundamentally, we must educate today the tomorrow’s responsible citizens and consumers. Diversifying economies beyond oil and gas is vital. The development of tourism and agriculture cannot be based on the poor use of limited resources. The International Conference on Education for Sustainable Development reflects the long-standing commitment of the Sultanate of Oman to these objectives. Sustainable development is a bigger picture, and needs for example to build on cultural and biological diversity. In this study, the researcher makes an attempt to understand the prevailing system in Oman with possible suggestions to lead the country towards Sustainable Development.

Keywords- Education, Sustainable Development, Economic Growth, Oman

I. INTRODUCTION Since the 1970s, public education provision in Oman has flourished. Almost all Omani children of basic education age are now enrolled in schools, along with a high proportion (86 percent) of those of post-basic education age. The Government of Oman has turned its attention to ensuring that the achievements made to date are not only maintained but also further enhanced to achieve a high-quality, efficient and relevant education system. This report is the result of an education sector study undertaken collaboratively by the Government of Oman and the World Bank to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the system and to provide recommendations to continue to improve education outcomes in Oman. Drawing on evidence and information from a wide variety of sources, this study concentrates on pre-tertiary education and examines aspects of access to education, quality of learning, teachers and teaching methods, relevance of education to the labor market, and the financing and management of the education system. The study offers some policy recommendations on the way forward.

II. SCENARIO OF EDUCATION IN OMAN The education in Oman has been through stages and has improved since1970 when his majesty ascended the throne. There are many tasks undertaken by the Sultanate of Oman in order to change the Omani economy. First, it has implemented plan for national education which focus on expanding educational opportunities in the country in 1976. Secondly, it has established a solid base, successive five-year plan saw Oman’s education system evolve rapidly, and this plan targeted each economic and governmental sector. Thirdly, basic education system was introduced as it aims to teach students communication, critical thinking, science and technology. After that, the future vision where all goals of vision 2020- economic diversification, sustainable development and others are linked to the quality of educational system. Moreover, vision 2040 with focus on five areas for improvement in education and training: management, quality, research and development, funding and phased enrolment is set to roll out soon. Also, aligned with industry, where Ministry of education tries to achieve vision 2040’s targets in different way. In addition, the right skills where specialists in private sector have been working with greater intensity with graduated students to ensure that new job seekers are fully equipped for an increasingly competitive work environment. Next, private investment that encouraged by the government allowed through royal decree encouraged establishment of investment in higher education. Finally, international school system which mainly serve the sultanate’s large expatriate community was instituted. The focus of Oman to change the structure of its

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

economy from oil based economy to knowledge based economy can be considered as an example of structural-change model. That change cannot be achieved without changing the educational system. The changes in educational system has taken place in Oman by moving the education from public to basic education, in which the basic education seeks to improve student's skills, communication, critical thinking, and keep them abreast to technological changes.

In 2013 almost all children in the sultanate were enrolled in school, 98% of students completed primary school that year and 92% were enrolled in secondary school. Human capital is a key element for human resource development that contributes to improve other forms of capital, so investing on it has a positive effect on economic development, society and economic growth.

Then introducing basic system was crucial to make students ready to meet the requirement of economic development. Students at different level of education in the future will become employees in work / labor market and will contribute to the ongoing national development, so they should be treated as assets rather than liabilities.

Ministry of Education (MoE) undertake vision 2040’s targets and focus on clear strategies to ensure sustained development. Instead, it seems logical to agree more with the study between the International Bank and MoE which argues that the responsibility for policy analysis, training and development of human resources in the education sector is responsibility of other four ministries in addition to MoE including Ministry of Higher Education, Ministry of the workforce, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Social development. It is difficult to coordinate the goals of development and address issues that require agreement of different ministries without a central point in charge of coordination which is an aspect of the challenge in developing the Omani education.

III. ECONOMIC STRUCTURE OF OMAN Oman as a country lies in the Middle East region. As a matter of fact, it is an oil producing country. Due to this reason, the economy of Oman is growing trajectory since the last 50 years, which can be observed from the per capita GDP of the country. Till the early 70s’ the growth of GDP was multifold i.e. around 1300% of the previous decade but in the next decade the growth rate declined to 34% and the percentage has not changed much till the decade of 90s’. Then again in the next few years the growth rate ascended to a certain ratio, this was the time when the breeze of globalization was flowing in all over the world the other reason can be stated as the mid-year increase in the oil prices. A number of facilities were privatized in the economy and even the government liberalized a few undertakings. On the other hand, FDI was also knocking the doors, but the infrastructure of the country did not support the same after a certain level. This was the basic deficiency of the education system of the country which do not support the use of advance technology in the education system.

In the early 60s’ oil was discovered in the area of Fahud and the actual production of the same started in the year 1967.

This operation was 60% owned by the government and the remaining 40% was divided into two different companies i.e. 34% to Shell and 6% to Compagnie Francaise des Petroles. As a matter of fact, Oman is not the member of OPEC. Other than the production of oil there are some other trades which are carried out in the country like fishing and agriculture, world famous dates and limes are also grown in Oman, the main production areas are Batinah costal plane and other highlands.

Some of the other products which are grown in the country are banana, coconut palms, wheat, etc. these are mainly concentrated in the area of Dhofar.

IV. MACRO-ECONOMIC TREND This is a chart of trend of the gross domestic product and gross domestic product per capita of Oman at market prices by the International Monetary Fund.

Year 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015

Gross Domestic Product (in millions US$) 6,342 10,395 11,686 13,803 19,450 30,905 58,814 81,550

Per Capita Income (US$) 4,674 6,129 6,341 6,355 8,097 11,806 23,351 24,024

Per Capita Income (as % of USA) 38.16 34.65 27.33 22.84 22.97 27.70 49.88 43.03

V. OMANIZATION In Oman, the Omanization program has been in operation since 1988, working toward replacing expatriates with trained Omani personnel. The goal of this initiative is to provide jobs for the rapidly growing Omani population. The state has allotted subsidies for companies to hire local employees not only to gradually reduce reliance on foreign workers but also to overcome an overwhelming employment preference on the part of Omanis for government jobs.

Omanization, however, in the private sector is not always successful. One of the reasons is that jobs are still filled by expatriates because of the lower wages. Studies reveal that an increasing number of the job openings in the private sector pay the All rights reserved by www.grdjournals.com

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

official minimum salary for nationals, which is an unattractive employment prospect for the locals. There is also the problem of placing Omani workers in senior positions due to the fact that a significant chunk of the workforce is composed of young and inexperienced Omanis.

VI. EDUCATION AS A CORE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Here in this section the researcher will try to evaluate the steps taken i.e. policy measures taken by the respective government in the field of education and the effect of the same on the growth of economy in the selected region of economy. As given in the above section it is clear that the Omani authorities are very much concerned about the combined development of education as well as growth of economy and even the required steps are being taken from time to time to balance the scenario.

Source: Source: MOE Statistical Department.

Fig. 1: Composition of Educational Enrollments in Oman (2010-16)

As stated in the above diagram (Figure 1), it is one of the most relevant step taken by the authorities where the two-year post-basic education system has gradually replaced the two years of secondary education under the general education system. The post-basic education curriculum is organized on a “core plus electives” model, and students are given an element of choice. During these two years, students’ school experience is expected to prepare them for life after school either for higher education or for entry into the labor market. To this end, all students are required to complete a graduation project.

The education system has experienced many reform efforts in recent years. Recent reforms have focused mainly on basic and post-basic schools. They have included such features as a student-centered approach to teaching and learning; introduction of information technology (IT) and life skills; emphasis on real-life applications in the curriculum; continuous assessment; and reduction of class size. Added resources have included learning resource centers in schools; computer labs in cycle two schools (grades 5–10); halls for curricular activities and for environment life skills; stores, canteens, and health rooms; and air conditioners for classrooms. The MOE has also raised initial teacher qualification standards. A school-based management process was introduced to give schools and their employees a greater role in planning, implementation and self-management. A program to evaluate overall school performance has been in operation for some years.

The MOE recognized that the amount of school time was inadequate to prepare students for the globally competitive economy. In response, it increased the official number of “instruction days” per year to 180 days for basic and general education schools, and it extended the length of the school day from four to over six hours for basic and general education. In theory, this increase (68 percent) in instruction time would bring Omani students in line with standards in many developed countries. Since the 1970s, Oman has made remarkable achievements in providing students with access to schools and to trained teachers. From a total of three schools for just over 900 male students in 1970 to now, 40 years later, the country has 1,283 schools and over 600,000 students. Universal basic education has been virtually achieved, and the secondary education gross enrollment ratio (GER) is high compared to many countries. The Government appreciates that, having achieved highly impressive school access results, its efforts must now turn to ensuring that students achieve satisfactory levels of learning — a necessary condition for economic and personal development.

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

Source: Source: MOE Statistical Department.

Fig. 2: Vocational Training and Technical Education System (2015-2016)

Source: Source: MOE Statistical Department Fig. 3: Composition of Educational Enrollments in Oman (1970-2016)

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

VII.

IMPACT OF EDUCATION

It is interesting to note the design of bi-fold system comprising vocational training and technical education. The well drafted process of meeting Vocational Training and Technical Education System requirements can be observed in the diagram (Figure 2).

Further, as can be seen from the diagram (Figure 3) the level of education is gradually increasing in the Sultanate of Oman, there is a tremendous growth observed in the enrollment of students in the schools i.e. from class 1 to 12th and even in the field of higher education. On the other hand, the authorities are taking all the measures to increase the enrollment of female students in the above mentioned education system.

As a matter of fact, increasing level of education has increased the pace of economic growth in the country. This can be viewed from the growth of GDP discussed in the following diagram (Figure 4). The researcher observed that as the level of higher education is increasing in the country and the technological means are being used in the field of education, the level of workforce is improving in the country and the effect of the same can be seen from the economic growth.

So far so good the oil industry is doing well from the last five decades as it is one of the oil producing countries; the nonoil industry consists of manufacturing, construction and utilities. This sector accounted for only 16% of nominal GDP in 2012, but it employs 45% of the country’s labor force. The national vision aims to increase the non-oil industry sector share to 29% of overall GDP by 2020. Manufacturing was the main contributor to the non-oil industry in 2012. It forms the cornerstone of Oman’s diversification strategy and is envisioned to account for 15% of overall GDP by 2020. The non-oil industry sector grew at a real rate of 10.4% in 2007-11. Manufacturing grew in real terms by 8.5% in 2007-11 and by 6.5% in 2012. The manufacturing sector has witnessed strong growth due to the expansion of petrochemicals, fertilizers, cement, metals and refineries. However, Oman’s oil refining capacity is set to increase from the present 220,000 b/d with the Sohar refinery adding 60,000 b/d of capacity by 2015.

The construction sector showed a good recovery in 2011-12, after coming to a near standstill in 2010. The sector grew by 6.1% in 2011 and by 5.6% in 2012 as project spending picked up. The government witnessed growth of 5.0% in 2013-14 as government infrastructure spending boosts construction sector activity.

Source: Source: MOE Statistical Department Fig. 4: Industry Sector Nominal GDP-Non-Oil (2008-14)

The data given in the above table (Figure 5) shows that in most of the cases the year wise growth of the economy is becoming positive in nature as the liabilities are decreasing and growth is gradual. This became possible because of the non-dependency on other developed countries for the upgraded technology as the country is now able to arrange the same in the home country. This became possible because of the spread of higher education in the country and a number of right decisions taken by the respective authorities. The level of higher education has increased in the country; work force is becoming more and more skilled and is committed to work for the growth of the economy.

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

Fig. 5: Key Economic Indicators

VIII. CONCLUSION ‘Type of Education Frames the future of human being’ this stands true in case of Oman, where the respective authorities have taken all the measures to improve the level of education in the country i.e. primary as well as higher education. Apparently the researcher feels that the resources should be shifted toward quality-related inputs and to support teaching and learning initiatives.

This resource shift could be achieved by reviewing the remuneration system for teaching and administrative staff. In particular, the review should focus on student-teacher and teacher-administrator ratios, which are currently low. Consideration could be given to the use of allowances to link remuneration to performance or acceptance of hardship posts rather than to seniority alone. Other management and finance initiatives aimed at improving quality include granting more financial autonomy and management responsibility to the governorates, regions and schools to make decisions more relevant to local contexts; conducting a tracking study of public finance for education to identify possible inefficiencies in resource allocation; and ensuring that the data required to make sound informed policy decisions in education are produced in a timely manner and are valid and reliable. These measures will certainly improve the situation at ground level and when the students opt for the higher education then this effort will improve the situation where the higher education students use to thrive for basic knowledge of the related subjects and they will be able to concentrate on their learning.

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The Role of Education and Capacity Building in Diversification of Oman Economy for Employment Generation and Sustainable Development (GRDJE/ Volume 4 / Issue 11 / 001)

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