2020-07-28

Oman Investment Authority continues restructuring companies to strengthen performance

Dissolution of the Board of one of the group’s companies, reducing the number Boards of Directors of some other companies, and unifying the support services to increase efficiency and reduce operating expenses.

Oman investment Authority continued its comprehensive review of all its affiliated state-owned companies, with the aim of developing their performance and improving their efficiency towards enabling them to contribute effectively to the national system, all stemming from the wise vision of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq - May Allah protect him. In this context, the Authority has started with restructuring telecommunications and information technology sector companies and some of their boards, through the consolidation of active and inactive infrastructure companies, such as Oman Broadband Company, Space Communications Technologies Company, and the government’s stake in the Oman Towers Company, in addition to the Oman Technology Fund. The restructure included dissolution of Board of one of the group’s companies, and reducing the number Boards of Directors of some other companies. The three companies will be under the umbrella of Oman Information Technology and Communications Group.

According to OIA, unifying these companies under one roof will help raise their efficiency and enhance operational capacity, so to reduce financial costs and ensure best financial results for the state. The consolidation process will also help promote investment in the digital economy and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, smart cities, big data, block chains, and other modern technologies.

It’s worth mentioning that the Oman Information Technology and Communications Group (OITCG) was established by Oman Investment Authority to be the Government’s investment arm in partnership with the private sector to implement the Sultanate’s communications and information technology projects, as well as initiatives of the fourth industrial revolution. It aims at enabling small and medium enterprises to contribute to this sector effectively through providing strategic and financial support as well as increasing efficiency through the unification of support services for current and future companies.

After consolidation, the Group will be in a stronger position to help promote the sector inside and outside the Sultanate, and will seek to attract foreign investments as well as marketing the group's companies in the regional and global markets.

OITCG is steadfast in its efforts to put His Majesty the Sultan’s directives to embower small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurial projects into effect, especially those based on innovation and artificial intelligence. Government directions through the Oman 2040 vision, and in partnership with the Ministry of Technology and Communications aim to make it one of the most important investment tools and the main engine for knowledge economy growth in the Sultanate, in an effort to transform the Sultanate into a regional hub in this sector.

Through all these initiatives, the Group seeks to empower the Omani economy through investing in minds, supporting promising youth, and building an advanced technical infrastructure capable of absorbing the developments and challenges of cybersecurity, in order to build a solid base based on economic diversification in technology, knowledge and innovation

Oman Investment Authority’s restructuring of OTICG comes in the wake of consolidating three of its investment initiatives in the field of fisheries and aquaculture, which paved the way to integrate more OIA’s entities in different sectors inside and outside the Sultanate in the future, within a planned strategy as dictated by emerging financial and business results.