Oman's spending on new projects, spurred by the recovery of oil prices, will raise the demand for foreign labour in 2010, the sultanate's national economy minister said on Sunday. The Gulf Arab country expects to create 4,000 jobs in 2010 for nationals through the 937 million ($2.4 billion) allocated for new projects, but Ahmad Mekki said the projects will also drive demand for foreign workers.
"We will need more expatriates to keep up with the pace of the development from new projects next year," Mekki told reporters, without giving figures for foreign workers. "There are not enough nationals to fulfil all the jobs in demand."
According to the latest national economy statistics, there are 852,000 foreign workers in Oman, five times the number of nationals working in the private sector. Foreign workers make up nearly 30 percent of Oman's population of 2.9 million people.
"We don't have enough experts in civil engineering to cater for the rising demands," Rashid Alawi, managing partner at Muscat Investments Co told Reuters. "Young Omanis also are not willing to work as labourers because they see it as demeaning." Oman has allocated an expenditure of 7.18 billion Omani rials in 2010, up from 6.42 billion a year earlier. Plans include building four new airports, three ports, power plants and petrochemical projects.
Oman fetched 12.5 percent more from oil income in 2009, basing its budget on an oil price of $45 per barrel, but selling its oil at an average price of $56.7 per barrel.
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