Massive loosening of governance in Oman. Sultan Haitham bin Tariq, the ruler, ordered that the various ministries be merged and the ministries renamed. New ministers were also announced. The deregulation has been done at the administrative level with the aim of ensuring better service to the public and development.
The new Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Youth was formed and the Ministries of Justice and Law were merged. The newly formed Ministry of Labor was also formed. The Sultan’s order states that the Ministry of Transport, Communications, and IT was also established. The Ministry of Heritage and Culture will now be known as the Ministry of Heritage and Tourism. The Department of Water Resources has been added to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. The Ministry of Housing will be known as the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning.
The Ministry of Oil and Natural Gas was renamed Energy Minerals. The Ministry of Higher Education has been renamed as the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry will be affiliated with the Department of Investment Promotion. At the same time, the Sultan said he had set up a new unit to monitor the implementation of Oman Vision 2040. Foreign media, including the Washington Post, praised the Sultan’s actions.
