Oman

Oman is a 1,000-mile-long (1,700 km) coastal plain at the southeast tip of the Arabian Peninsula lying on the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. The country is the size of Kansas.

History

Arabs migrated to Oman from the 9th century BC onward, and conversion to Islam occurred in the 7th century AD Muscat, the capital of the geographical area known as Oman, was occupied by the Portuguese from 1508 to 1648. Then it fell to Ottoman Turks, but in 1741, Ahmad ibn Sa'id forced them out, and the descendants of Sultan Ahmad rule Oman today.

Ahmad expanded his empire to East Africa, and for a time the Omani capital was in Zanzibar. After 1861, however, Zanzibar fell from Omani control. The sultans and imams of Oman clashed continuously throughout the 20th century until 1959, when the last Ibadi imam was evicted from the country. In a palace coup on July 23, 1970, the sultan, Sa'id bin Taimur, who had ruled since 1932, was overthrown by his son, Qabus ibn Sa'id, who promised to establish a modern government and use newfound oil wealth to aid the people of this very isolated state. Oman joined the Arab League and the United Nations in 1971.

A long border dispute with Yemen was resolved in Oct. 1992; in 1997, the countries agreed to new maps defining the border.

In 1997, Sultan Qabus granted women the right to be elected to the country's consultative body, the Shura Council (Majlis al-Shura). In 2003, the sultan extended voting rights to everyone over 21; previously, voters were selected from among the elite, and only about a quarter of the population was allowed to vote.

Info

Languages: Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects

Ethnicity/race: Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri

Lankan, Bangladeshi), African

Religions: Islam: Ibadhi 75%, Sunni, Shi'a; Hindu

National Holiday: Birthday of Sultan Qaboos, November 18

Literacy rate: 81.4% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2009 est.): $69.48 billion; per capita $23,900. Real growth rate: 2.7%. Inflation: 5.3%. Unemployment: 15% (2004 est.). Arable land: 0.2%. Agriculture: dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish.

Labor force: 920,000 (2002 est.); agriculture n.a., industry n.a., services n.a. Industries: crude oil production and refining, natural and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production; construction, cement, copper, steel, chemicals, optic fiber.

Natural resources: petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas. Exports: $29.34 billion (2009 est.): petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles. Imports: $18.41 billion (2009 est.): machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, food, livestock, lubricants. Major trading partners: China, South Korea, Japan, Thailand, UAE, UK, Italy, Germany, U.S. (2004).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 201,000 (1997); mobile cellular: 59,822 (1997). Radio broadcast stations: AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999). Radios: 1.4 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 13 (plus 25 low-power repeaters) (1999). Televisions: 1.6 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000). Internet users: 120,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 34,965 km; paved: 9,673 km (including 550 km of expressways); unpaved: 25,292 km (2001). Ports and harbors: Matrah, Mina' al Fahl, Mina' Raysut. Airports: 139 (2002).

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First Contact

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Our Vision

To be a leading Bank in financing development projects of Large, Medium & Small Enterprises by leveraging the professionalism of its employees and quality of its customer service.

Our Mission

To commit necessary long and short term financial resources that are required to support the development activities of Large, Medium & Small Enterprises in line with the Government goals to diversify the sources of national revenue.

Oman Development Bank (ODB) , the leading development financing institution in the Sultanate, has been a key partner in spearheading the nation’s economic and social development. Oman Development Bank has started functioning in the year 1977 in the sectors of industry, agriculture,fisheries, oil & mining. In 1981, a specialised bank for agriculture and fisheries was established in the name of Oman Bank for Agriculture and Fisheries.

In 1997, the two banks were merged to form Oman Development Bank (SAOC).ODB strives hard to foster the nation’s development by actively participating in the government’s concerted efforts to enhance economic and social development. ODB is a leading financier to the small and medium enterprises (SME) sector, providing financial assistance for a range of development activities as well as working capital finance to private enterprises.

The bank witnessed a new phase in financing small and medium projects in all development sectors under one umbrella, offering soft loans at interest rates not exceeding 3% while providing interest-free loans up to RO 5,000 to small investors and craftsmen.

Oman Development Bank has been a long standing advocate for enhancing development of various sectors of the economy. Working alongside the government principles ,

ODB upholds the mission of diversifying the sources of national revenue by providing finance to corporate, medium enterprises, small projects for the key sectors such as, Industrial, Agriculture and Livestock, Tourism, Fisheries, Educational, Medical, Professionals and Handicrafts. The bank charges an interest rate of only 3% per annum. It also offers interest free loans for small investors who are fully devoted to their projects and have no other commitments elsewhere.

The facilities ODB offers: Loans are sanctioned by Oman Development Bank for establishing new projects or for expanding existing ones. It grants loans up to R.O one million where it finances a maximum of 50% of the total investment if the project is located within the Muscat Governorate and 56% if the project is located outside the Muscat Governorate.

Loan Duration

Upto 10 years

Securities

Adequate securities that cover the project risks

Grace Period

Not exceeding half of repayment period of the loan.

Documents Required for Applying for Loan

Copy of the permit, registration, or approval issued from the concerned authority, whether for new or existing projects.
The official documents that show the legal entity of the project.
The documents pertaining to 3 quotations from contractors/suppliers of assets.
The feasibility study (Cost of Projects more than RO 100,000 ) including the following:

A- Regarding new projects: Technical, marketing, financial and management aspects that determine the viability of the project.

B- Regarding existing projects:

The projects past experience since its establishment with clarification whether the obtained soft loans will expand the projects’ productivity or increase the service capacity.

Audited financial statements for the past 3 years.

C- Regarding current projects with existing encumbrances:

Financial and other difficulties encountered, their causes and suggested means of overcoming them,if any

Audited Financial Statements for the past 3 years.

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Education is considered as one of the main priorities of the wise government of H.M Sultan Qaboos bin Said, giving the utmost care and basic support for the development of human capabilities. Accordingly, ODB plays a fundamental role by granting loans to this sector.