A Number of Jobs in Oman Will Soon Be For Citizens Only

Jobs include positions in finance, commercial, administration, and insurance.

Oman officials announced on Sunday that the Sultanate will bar expatriates from certain jobs, as part of an effort to create more work opportunities for Nationals during an economic downturn.

"A number of jobs in the private sector will be nationalised," the Omani Labour Ministry announced in an official tweet.

Expatriates make up around 40 per cent of the Sultanate's 4.5 million population, with the country depending strongly on foreign labour.

The jobs that will be reserved for citizens include various positions in shops, car dealerships, insurance companies, as well as jobs in finance, administration, and commercial industries.

The ministry added that work as a driver, "no matter what the vehicle" will soon be "limited to Omanis only".

Work permits owned by expats for those jobs will not be renewed after it expires.

Last year in April, officials ordered state-owned organisations and firms to accelerate replacing expat staff with citizens, especially jobs with senior positions, to help create more employment opportunities for their people.

At the time, large numbers of foreign workers held managerial positions in government-run companies, said the Omani finance ministry.

On Monday, Oman's Ministry of Health announced that the total number of positive Covid-19 cases in the Sultanate reached 133,253, while the number of recoveries is at 126,334.

The total number of Coronavirus related death in Oman is now at at 1,522, confirmed officials.