Bahrain

One of the world’s largest and most comprehensive surveys on life abroad has ranked Oman as the most friendly country.

The GCC Ministers of Labour and Social Affairs and Development approved at their fifth meeting on Wednesday at the GCC Advisory Board of the Supreme Council in Muscat a number of decisions related to allowing the GCC citizens to start private manpower recruitment activities in any GCC state.

As part of its expansion plans, eXtra, the GCC region’s most popular electronics store, has recently opened its third store in Oman in Sohar, conveniently located opposite Safeer Mall.

Some entities in Oman are advocating lifting of ban on e-cigarettes. However, the National Tobacco Control Committee (NTCC) and the Ministry of Health (MoH) are strongly resisting the move due to detrimental health consequences of such products, especially in light of the recent first death attributed to e-cigarettes in the US and with 120 cases of young people being hospitalised.

According to Colliers MENA Review for the second quarter, an additional 2,100 rooms will mark the entry into all of the four markets by year end.

As most central banks in the GCC last week reduced their key policy rates following the US Fed decision, this is expected to speed up economic recovery and give a boost to business activity in the region.

Hassan al Matrooshi has become the first Omani to win an award in the prestigious international poetry contest Tulliola-Renato Filippelli in Italy.

The Embassy of Nepal in Muscat organised a luncheon programme on the theme ‘Investment Prospects in Nepal’ on Monday at the W Muscat hotel.

With the onset of khareef season in Dhofar, airlines are operating 179 weekly flights to Salalah to cater to the tourist rush.

Oman is steadily growing as a hub for technology investors moving up two places since 2017, and currently ranked fifth in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).