Friday 03 / May / 2024
Muscat: Manufacturing will be the focus of discussion at Wednesday evening’s Inside Stories session organised by Ithraa.
“We see a promising future for Omani manufacturing. In fact, many believe Oman-made products have the perfect combination of quality, safety and good value for money,” said Taleb Al Makhmari, Ithraa’s acting director, General of Marketing and Media and organiser of the annual Inside Stories initiative.
Manufacturing is the engine that drives innovation, it transforms research into new products and production processes that generate profits and make the world a better place.
It has been helping power economic growth, create jobs and raise living standards for almost three centuries.
It has created new and vital industries and products ranging from PCs and mobile phones to biotechnology and solar power.
Today, Oman is enjoying and benefiting from a surge in manufacturing, the production of world-class and highly sought after goods is soaring, amongst them are batteries, plastic, marble, cables, fragrances, steel to hand-made chocolate and ceramics to women’s fashion to precision engineering. Indeed, innovation in design is creating Omani products that are capturing the consumers’ attention domestically and internationally.
In 2015, the Sultanate’s non-oil exports hit $8 billion, up from $650 million in 2002 and locally produced goods are today exported to 140 countries worldwide.
Logistics advantages
“Given our geographic position and advantages in logistics, talent and infrastructure, Oman’s manufacturers are well positioned to compete internationally. Our manufacturing sector is a truly global business that is essential for the long-term health of the Sultanate’s growing economy,” explained Al Makhmari.
Along with examining the use of sensors, intelligent robots and big data analytics, the session will also consider the rise of middle class consumers in the emerging markets of Asia and Africa. Research estimates that by 2030, Asia will represent 66 per cent of the global middle class population and 59 per cent of middle-class consumption. In addition to Asia, the number of middle class households in 11 key sub-Saharan African countries, excluding South Africa, are set to triple to 22 million by 2030. “This offers Omani manufacturers huge export opportunities,” pointed out Ithraa’s Al Makhmari.
Wednesday’s evening session will also focus on the public’s perception of manufacturing, one that still often involves large factories, long production lines and heavy dangerous machinery.
The global recession of 2008-2009 and the collapse, for example, of Detroit’s world-renowned automobile industry reinforces such stereotypical images of manufacturing. Indeed, the ordinary citizen could be forgiven for believing that it is inevitable that we have seen the back of manufacturing.
“Rather than a dirty, dangerous and disappearing industry, Omani manufacturing must be seen as a mechanism for driving innovation. It is a sector that should be viewed as smart, safe, sustainable and surging. One that is attracting significant inward investment, powering exports and creating jobs,” stressed Al Makhmari.
Held at Bank Muscat’s head office in Airport Heights, Wednesday’s session begins at 7:30 pm and will be moderated by Dr. Wail Al Harrasi, corporate technology advisor, Petroleum Development Oman. The panellists include: Shadya Al Ismailiya, founder, Deema Oman; Nicolas Barakat, chief executive officer, Octal; Abdullah Al Wahaibi, business development manager, Voltamp Energy SAOG; and Shatha Abbas, director, The Nejd.
