Over $596.6mln spent on heritage and culture in Oman

Muscat: In 2019, over OMR 230 million was spent by the government on promoting heritage and culture. OMR 10.5 was the average monthly household spending on recreational and cultural activities according to a new book titled 'Culture is participation and spread' issued by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).

The NCSI said in a statement: "The importance of this publication stems from the fact that it gives statistical and informational inference evidence serving planners and those interested in cultural aspects that include a variety of religious, material, intellectual and emotional peculiarities that characterize a particular community or group."

Some of the numbers and statistics shared in the book are below:

1. The number of visitors to the 51 castles and forts in Oman increased by 71.2% between 2015 and 2019, reaching 426,525 in 2019.

2. The number of paintings and drawings displayed in 2019 amounted to about 1,291, while the number of participating artists reached 507 and 16,500 visitors.

3. The number of photography shops increased from 416 in 2015 to 459 in 2019.

4. The number of shops selling and trading handicrafts increased by 94% to reach 348 shops, despite a decrease in workshops for craft products by 21.6% to reach 29 workshops.

5. The number of books published between 2015 and 2019 increased by 52.7% to reach 767 books, while the number of public libraries increased by 19 per cent to 31 libraries.

6. The number of graduates in the specialisations of society and culture in 2019 reached 3381, of whom females accounted for 61 per cent.

7. The number of hotels and hotel apartments rose between 2015 and 2019 by 54.4 per cent, increasing the number of guests in total by 43 per cent.