Muscat: The 1st Development Projects Forum, held under the auspices of Engineer Badr bin Salem al Maamari, the General-Secretary of the Tender Board, mooted the importance of enhancing equal opportunities, tender transparency, and providing essential data and information for projects to be floated or announced during the current year of 2024.

Several officials and experts shared their perspectives during the event, which also saw the participation of over 300 companies from various sectors.

On the sidelines of the event, Eng Abdullah al Habsi, Head of Projects Follow-up Office, said, “The forum is reviewing the projects to be tendered until the year-end as over 300 companies are taking part in the event. Notably, the investment volume set for the development projects stood at RO200 million in 2021.

The investment volume was RO500 million in 2022. Meanwhile, the amount of floated tenders was projected to be RO1 billion in 2023.

The event highlighted major challenges hindering the execution of these projects.

The participants were digging for the best strategy for implementation.”

This forum is part of the General Secretariat’s strategy, aligned with Vision 2040 of Oman, to offer better opportunities for competitive project pricing, resulting in financial savings for projects, along with speed and accuracy in implementation.

Moreover, the forum marked a significant milestone in Oman, as it reviews government projects that will be tendered or announced during the current year while supporting SMEs to seize opportunities in this regard.

During the forum, key projects targeted for tender in the second quarter of the current year were reviewed, including Nizwa Gate project, constructing al Dakhiliya Square (al Dakhiliya Boulevard) in partnership with the Governorates Development Program, as well as paving several internal roads in Nizwa, Manah, al Jabal al Akhdar, Bidbid, and Adam.

Additionally, upcoming tenders to cover the dualisation project in Musandam Governorate, spanning 4.5 kilometers (first phase).

Furthermore, tenders were announced for the development of the Central Market, the establishment of the Sustainable Park and Desert (al Sahraa) Park in al Buraimi Governorate, along with tendering for the second phase of Al Buraimi Hospital development.

Bids for executing the remaining works of the Adam-Thumrait dualisation project are to be invited in the fourth quarter of the current year.

Abdullah bin Hameed Al Habsi, Head of Projects Follow-Up Office, noted that the forum targets various companies engaged in urban construction, ports, roads, dams, services, supply, maintenance, and others, providing them with opportunities for competition, partnership, and understanding the current and future directions of government projects.

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