Oman bars expatriates from more professions

Oman has added several new professions to a blacklist of jobs that are barred for foreigners in some of its regions as part of an on-going drive to gradually ease reliance on expatriate workers, the country’s media reported on Tuesday.

Oman’s Labour Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nassir Al Bakri issued a decision banning expatriates from a host of professions in some areas, including female salons, auto spare parts, motorcycle shops and other jobs in Adam wilaya (province) in the central region, the newspapers said.

Other professions added to the blacklist that covers different regions in the Gulf country include sale of bread and related products, sale of cassettes, spices and similar products, and honey. The decision also barred expatriates from owning internet cafes in Bahlaa province.

In other provinces, the decision said only Omanis are allowed to trade in readymade garments, textile, footwear, perfume and home appliances.

Like other Gulf oil exporters, Oman has been locked in a drive to find jobs for its citizens and reduce dependence on foreigners. Such heavy reliance has allied with a rapid population increase and slow economic growth in some years to create unemployment problems for some Gulf nations and prompt them to embark on job nationalisation programmes.

In Oman, growth in the population was as high as 10.6 per cent in 2009, when it stood at nearly 3.17 million. More than 36 per cent of them are foreigners.

Oman, which is not an Opec member, produces nearly 850,000 bpd of oil and controls around 4.5 billion of proven crude deposits.

The country has the second largest liquefied natural gas plant in the region after Qatar, with the output capacity of the plant in the southern port of Sur standing at about 10 million tonnes per year.