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Oman - A significant push to improve e-services

Wednesday, 12 May 2010 14:01

Oman's burgeoning IT sector has been in focus again this month, as the Sultanate played host to the COMEX exhibition, the IT, telecoms and technology show. The event was held on April 26-30 at the Oman International Exhibition Centre (OIEC), hosted over 100 companies from across the region and further afield, and included a pavilion specialising on e-government and e-business in the Sultanate held on the 27th, where the CEO of the Information Technology Authority (ITA), Dr Salim Al Ruzaiqi, was keynote speaker.

The Omani authorities have made a significant push in recent years to improve their e-government offering, including the creation of an internet portal for government services and, most recently, the inauguration of the Sultanate's first cyber centre. The latter facility, based in the capital, Muscat, and known as the Oman National Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT), was opened earlier in April to provide the Sultanate with enhanced security for its information assets, as well as coordinating emergency responses to incidents relating to the internet.

Reflecting the government's growing capacity in the field of IT, one of the highlights of COMEX this year was a stand dedicated to "e.oman", which as well as showcasing CERT and the official eGovernment Services Portal also included other elements of government support for the sector. The Oman Government Network, ePayment Gateway, National Data Centre, Innovation and Support Centre, eTransactions Law, National IT Training and Awareness, Oman National CERT, and the e.oman Awareness Campaign were all included in the stand, which was hosted by the ITA.

In some respects, Oman's public IT infrastructure currently outstrips demand from the Sultanate's population, as internet penetration continues to remain relatively low. According to Internet World Stats, an online agency which monitors global internet penetration statistics, Oman had 557,000 internet subscribers in September 2009, representing a penetration rate of 16.3%. By comparison, the current average penetration rate for the Middle East is 28.8%.

One reason for the relatively low figure is Oman's widely dispersed population, which naturally presents a challenge for telecoms providers. However, developments in both technology and market organisation look set to gradually overcome this. On the one hand, 3G and WiMAX technology means that remote locations can now be serviced without the need to lay down cable infrastructure. On the other, 2010 has seen the emergence of a new fixed-line operator in the form of Nawras, which is currently in the process of laying 5000 km of fibre-optic cables and hopes to serve 81% of the population by next year. Nawras, a joint venture involving Qatar's QTel, Danish firm TDC and several local partners, has been a mobile service provider since 2005 and hopes to enhance the market offering of integrated telecoms services in Oman, as well as developing the wholesale market through resellers and partnerships. The company will also be using WiMAX for its fixed services.

Additional services and cost competition will be beneficial for a market that continues to see growth in demand for technology. A recent market report predicted that demand for consumer electronics in Oman will grow from $487m this year to $600m by 2014, with computer hardware (representing 36% of the market) expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 6% during that period. The market for mobile handsets, which are also becoming a popular method of accessing the internet, is expected to reach over $200m by 2014, with mobile penetration hitting 174.3%. Strong figures such as these point to a continued healthy future for Oman's IT sector.

Global Arab Network

This article is published in partnership with Oxford Business Group

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Published comments are the opinions of private individuals and do not reflect the views of Global Arab Network