Through successive Five-Year Plans, the MOE has exerted constant efforts to propagate and promote literacy and education among all the citizens of the Sultanate. It has a longstanding policy to deliver education to the doorstep of every household, which has been translated into a creative and dynamic strategy.

The MOE’s literacy and adult education programme reaches all communities in all regions, even in hard-to-access remote parts of the country.

It has shown flexibility in adapting the delivery mechanisms in order to suit the convenience and daily lifestyles of different target groups in different parts of the country.

The MOE has a policy of providing adult literacy centres wherever they are needed, even to the remotest hamlets. This partly explains the phenomenon of so many centres closing and opening each year.

1. The location of each centre is selected on the basis of its ease of accessibility to people.
2. The timings of literacy classes are flexible, but adult education classes meet from 5pm to 8.30pm five days a week.
3. The centres are used for other social and community activities, which are often integrated with educational activities.
4. Health, environment, and social awareness and advocacy programmes are linked with literacy education activities.
5. Valuable information and knowledge related to health, living conditions, protecting the environment, maternal and child health care, nutrition, immunization, family care, etc. is interwoven with the literacy and adult education programme content and activities.

Since its launch in 1973/74, the literacy programme has covered 189,631 citizens, of whom 47,912 have graduated successfully. Apart from providing literacy skills to tens of thousands, this programme has contributed to some more important, less visible achievements by acting as a catalyst in changing people’s attitudes towards the education of girls and women in particular, and towards the role of education in enhancing the quality of life in general.

Moreover, being multisectoral by nature, this programme has provided valuable experience in the field of intersectoral cooperation and intrasectoral coordination.

No scientific study has been conducted to investigate the factors explaining the low attendance rates and high dropout rates in adult literacy classes. Reasons commonly given, nonetheless, could be summarized as follows:

1. In the earlier years of the programme, enrolment increased because people received the tangible benefits of literacy and basic education in terms of new employment opportunities, promotions to better-paid and more preferable positions, and transfers to more attractive job titles. Thus time spent on acquiring literacy skills and on getting basic education qualifications rebounded on an improved standard of living and social esteem. Subsequently, however, as more and more educated people joined the skilled workforce, the labour market became saturated, and competition from better-educated and skilled candidates increased so much that acquiring literacy or even primary education level skills was no longer an advantage for earning a better living.
2. Lack of motivation on the part of the students, above all, is the major barrier, particularly for females because the classes are held in the evening. There are relatively few intrinsically-motivated learners who have a burning desire to acquire knowledge in any community.
3. Some ladies, particularly those who are fully engaged in household work, find it difficult to attend the classes.

The Ministry of Education has re-invigorated its efforts to eliminate illiteracy in order to upgrade the quality of life and enhance the well-being of all Omani people. To this effect, the following measures have been adopted by the Government over the past few months.

The NCEI is chaired by the Under Secretary for General Education, and is made up of members representing different Government and non-Government institutions concerned with adult literacy.

The NCEI is charged with the following responsibilities:

1. To formulate the general policy and action plan for the eradication of illiteracy project.
2. To determine the implementation phases, their priorities, time frame and targets.
3. To determine the programme, activities and location for the implementation of the project.
4. To coordinate the work of the partners involved in the project.
5. To set up a programme of monitoring and evaluation, and prepare periodical reports.
6. To establish channels of communication between the beneficiaries, implementation staff and managers at different levels of the organization in order to remove obstacles and facilitate the implementation of the whole project.
7. To determine the staff needed (supervisors, teachers, and others) for the project, and to determine the remuneration for the staff.
8. To study the financial requirements and seek partners and sources of financing the project.

Among its prerogatives, the committee has the authority to invite experts and consultants, and seek advice as needed. The chairperson of the committee has the power to appoint technical subcommittees consisting of members selected from the members of the NCEI and from other specialists in the field.

The Ministry of Education has organized an intensive training course for advisors in adult education. The participants for this course have been selected from educational supervisors, school principals, assistant principals and highly experienced teachers with a lot of experience in adult education. The intent is to create a national cadre of Omani advisors spread across all the regions.

The Ministry of Education, in cooperation with the Ministry of Higher Education and Sultan Qaboos University, is undertaking a project to revise and redesign the Arabic language and Islamic Studies textbooks of the Adult Literacy programme. This is to enhance the relevance and appropriateness of the content and methodology to the needs of the participants.

The general knowledge book for the Adult Literacy programme was designed and developed by the Ministry of Education about five years ago, in coordination with the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, and with financial and technical assistance from UNESCO. The book covered the topics and issues that are central to the daily life needs of ordinary people living in different regions of the country. A variety of topics covering current issues related to social, religious, cultural, economic, work, women, children, health, pregnancy, family life, childcare, nutrition, infectious and contagious diseases, STDs, women’s rights, children’s rights, etc. were included and presented in an attractive style interspersed with well-targeted messages. The book so far has proved a great success in raising the knowledge and awareness of people and changing their attitudes in the right direction.

In addition to literacy and adult education, as described in the preceding section, the concept of basic education covers a much wider spectrum of knowledge, skills, and competencies as well as attitudes, beliefs and values.

To achieve the goal of basic education (which coincides with the broader goal of human resources development) needed to realize the future vision of Omani economy, the Government has designed an integrated multisectoral approach which combines environmental, social, religious, cultural, economic, vocational, educational and health aspects of human life. In this respect, then – along with the Ministry of Education, the Ministries of Higher Education; Health; Awqaf and Religious Affairs; National Economy; Social Affairs, Labour and Vocational Training; and Information; and Sultan Qaboos University – all co-ordinate and align their individual and collaborative programmes, so that all the programmes mutually reinforce one another and generate the synergistic impact needed to achieve the goal of a well-balanced diversified economy, self-reliance and a high quality of life for all the citizens in the Sultanate.

The coordinated effort of the various Government institutions is further supported by a number of national and international NGOs, as well as various UN organizations.

Since the advent of the Omani Renaissance in 1970, human resources development has been the nucleus of Oman’s social and economic development policies. Successive national Five-Year Plans have given increasing priority to human resources development through the provision of free basic education and free national technical education and job skills training for all.

The strategy of creating an educated and technologically-skilled broad base of domestic manpower is central to the realization of the Omani ‘vision’ of a sustainable, self-reliant, balanced economy independent of expatriate labour.

The Omanization of the workforce through the provision of formal and non-formal quality education and training, aimed at developing knowledge, attitudes, values, life skills, job skills and the competencies required of all citizens to become productive members of society, is at the heart of the human resources development strategy.

In order to develop the capacity to respond to the ever changing need for divergent new technological skills and the competencies of the emerging 21^st century labour market, the Government has restructured and modernized the vocational/technical education and training system during the past three years. The vocational/technical education and training system has been revamped and remodelled.

In order to inculcate right attitudes towards work and the value of the dignity of labour in the minds of the younger generation, the Ministry of Education, under the current educational reform plan, has introduced life and environmental skills (including vocational skills) as a school subject in the basic education curricula right from Grade 1.

At the same time, to develop a culture of cybernation and information technology, Information Technology and Computer Literacy has also been introduced as a school subject in all grades starting from Grade 1.

On the other hand, the formal vocational education and training system is designed to prepare semi-skilled and skilled workers, technicians, craftsmen and middle level managers for different occupations in different sectors. The Vocational Educational and Training (VET) system constitutes of Vocational Training Centres (VTCs) and Technical Industrial Colleges (TICs) run by the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour and Vocational Training; and specialized Training Institutes and Colleges run by the private sector. In addition to these, the Ministry of Health operates 14 Training Colleges in different fields of specialization in the health sector.

At present, there are four vocational training centres run by the MOSALVT and 200 private training institutes run by private companies, spread across all the regions of the Sultanate.

Vocational Training Centres (VTCs) admit all students who have not completed their basic or secondary education and are above 15 years of age to a variety of one-year programmes for semi-skilled workers and two-year programmes for skilled workers. In addition to one-year and two-year training programmes, the VTCs offer a variety of short-term training courses in different occupational fields.

The 200 private Training Institutes (PTIs) spread throughout the Sultanate also offer a variety of training programmes (mostly short-term courses) in different areas of training.

The core of these programmes is designed in compliance with the requirements of the National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs).

The five TICs located in the major industrial areas across the regions offer three-year programmes. The first year of the programme, called the foundation year, is devoted to teaching English and core skills. This is followed by two years of structured training in a specific vocation.

With secondary graduation and aptitude as the admission requirement, these programmes are designed to prepare skilled technicians and middle-level managers for industrial, business and commercial enterprises. The training programmes are flexible and periodically modified to align them with the changing needs of the evolving labour market.

In addition to the 5 TICs there are 5 private colleges, a Banker’s Institute College, and 14 training colleges of different specializations in paramedical occupations and professions run by the Ministry of Health.

All five of the private colleges offer two- or three-year Certificate and Higher National Diploma programmes in a twinning arrangement with American or British universities, colleges or institutions, with the prospect of further university education at the mentor institution for students who want to pursue their education to university degree level.

In the field of technical/vocational education and training, the Government has established a healthy partnership with the private sector in which the industry, trade, and commerce sectors have demonstrated increasing involvement in various types of pre-service and in-service training programmes. Various types of employment-oriented skill development training and other vocational/technical training and education programmes have been implemented in co-operation with, and under the supervision of, the MOSALVT.

In order to encourage the private sector to play an increasing role in vocational/technical education and the training of Omanis (which is a pre-requisite condition for the materialization of the envisioned goal of Omanization and self-reliance), the Government offers attractive incentives in terms of reimbursement of training cost of all trainees to the private sector. This training scheme also stipulates a guarantee of employment for each trainee on completion of his/her training.

The Government VTCs produced 1,428 graduates in 1996/97, and 1,130 graduates in 1997/98, while 1,775 trainees are expected to graduate in 1998/99.

In addition to the one-year and two-year programmes, 1,623 trainees were enrolled in the 5 VTCs, and 9,968 trainees were enrolled in the 200 PTIs, in various types of short-term training programmes in 1998/99.

The output of the TICs has steadily increased from 166 graduates in 1991/92 to 632 in 1996/97, almost four-fold over the past five years.

With the explosion of information technologies and incredible developments in digital technologies, the nature of work and techniques of task operations are in transition and, in turn, the attitudes, skills and competencies required to carry out those tasks are changing so fast that the knowledge and skills that are considered most up-to-date and appropriate today will be rendered obsolete tomorrow.

Keeping this aforementioned state of flux in mind, the MOSALVT of the Sultanate has designed a futuristic Vocational/Technical Education and Training system with a built-in emphasis on continuous learning and skill upgrading throughout one’s life. The new philosophy of vocational education and training prepares the learner to anticipate rapid changes in lifestyles and work styles, just as they are currently experiencing in learning style due to fast developing technologies, and to take pre-emptive measures to remain prepared to face the imminent challenges.

Modelled on the British system, the newly-installed system of competency-level based accreditation and certification of job-related knowledge and skills ensures and reinforces continuous self-learning and enhancement of the knowledge, skills and competencies leading to upgradation and re-certification at a higher level on the professional scale.

The introduction of innovative approaches to learning and training, and assessment and certification, has been eagerly welcomed and widely accepted by all stakeholders, employers, trainees, trainers and the public concerned.

Scaled occupational levels of certification, determined on the basis of an objective assessment of skills and competencies, have led to a transparent standard of training programmes offered by the different institutions, and have provided further incentive for employees to upgrade their professional qualifications. The willingness of employees to enhance their professional competency has been favourably responded to and actively supported by employers by facilitating their employees’ participation in various types of staff-development activities, and related education and training programmes offered in the Sultanate. Moreover, companies have adopted it as a common policy to take an employee’s participation in training courses into consideration for promotion, etc.

In another national skills development area, the MO?SALVT – in cooperation with other government agencies and national and international NGOs – has launched a multipurpose, intersectoral, nationwide programme of training in the production of traditional handicrafts and artefacts, concentrating particularly on training women.

In terms of access and equity, the vocational training programmes, handicraft training enterprises, various women’s development programmes and income-generating activities cover all parts of the Sultanate. There are also special programmes for Bedouin areas that focus upon advocacy and training in women’s participation in family income-generating activities, raising their awareness about the importance of their participation in social activities.

Vocational/technical education and training programmes are open for both female and male trainees. The training centres and colleges provide separate halls of residence for female and male trainees.

Regarding provision for the development of essential skills and attitudes of all citizens – women and men – in order to develop their potential to play their roles as productive citizens, the MOE is in the process of incorporating the necessary contents and concepts into the basic and secondary education curricula currently being reconstructed under the reform programme.

As stated in earlier parts of this report, human resources development through the provision of an appropriate education has been a longstanding policy commitment of the Government. Right from the beginning of the renaissance, the Government, has adopted a policy of national development through the implementation of a series of successive Five-Year Plans. The key to national development lies in achieving a sustainable, diversified, balanced economy erected upon the solid foundation of a self-reliant, educated, technologically skilled, broad-based workforce.

The ultimate goal, and the major source of developmental endeavour, is the human being. Pursuant to the long range goal, the Fifth Five-Year Plan aims to improve the quality of life and the standard of living of Omani citizens to the level of that prevalent in more advanced countries. As His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said emphasized in his Royal address to the nation on the occasion of the first National Day, "Where domestic policy is concerned, our plan is to build our country and provide all its people with a decent, affluent life." (Speech of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said on the occasion of the first National Day, 23/07/1971.) In the same vein, on the occasion of the fourth National Day, His Majesty reiterated, "It is man who performs development, and its objective is to ensure happiness for the individual and his reformation, so as to give the best of his talent and production." (from The Royal Speeches of H.M. Sultan Qaboos bin Said, 1970–1995, issued by the Ministry of Information, pp. 37–38.)

In this respect, His Majesty has given clear directives to mobilize all resources and launch a multisectoral co-ordinated approach using all the delivery systems of education, mass media, traditional and modern channels of communication, and social action to develop enlightened attitudes, humanitarian values and rational behaviour in everyone, young or old, particularly the younger generation upon whom depends the future of the nation.

Over the years, a variety of well-focused long-term and short-term regular campaigns have been carried out. These campaigns were organized by various ministries individually, or in collaboration with other government agencies and ministries in cooperation with national NGOs and international organizations. Advocacy, awareness and information campaigns focused upon hot topics such as health education, maternity and child health, immunization, nutrition, birth spacing, children’s rights, women’s development, literacy, adult education, protecting the environment, health and sanitation, family care, and a variety of educational programmes directed at well-defined target populations.

Since good health is at the heart of better living, during the 90s the Ministry of Health – in cooperation and coordination with the Ministries of Education, Social Affairs, Labour and Vocational Training; Endowment and Religious Affairs, and Information – has successfully conducted a number of education, awareness, information and advocacy campaigns.

The Ministry of Health in Oman maintains the School Health Department, which provides a variety of basic health care services in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, while at the same time educating the masses about issues related to child health, maternal health, nutrition, family planning, protection from diseases, STD/HIV, etc.

As a result of this initiative, a general medical check-up is conducted on all students entering the first primary, first preparatory and first secondary grades. In 1997 the coverage was nearly universal – 99.9%, 99.6% and 99.8% for first primary, first preparatory and first secondary students respectively. A complete record of medical check-ups and health history is maintained for each student. All students are tested for eyesight problems, strabismus and trachoma, and hearing problems.

Immunization coverage of 1^st, 7^th and 10^th grade students is almost 100%. The treatment of minor ailments and first aid is provided on the spot, while the cases that require follow-up and special attention and treatment are referred to physicians and specialists.

The Department of School Health in the Ministry of Health – in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and other agencies involved – procures, prepares, produces and publicizes educational materials containing health information and specific messages tailor-made for different age group populations throughout the country, particularly in rural regions.

The Omani version of "Facts for Life" was published by the MOH in cooperation with UNICEF in 1996 for free distribution to all second year secondary students (male and female). Additional information and explanations on health related issues are provided by school health specialists.

The health education campaign does not stop at the medical check-up and immunization of all students. School health teams for each region conduct routine inspections, and ensure the availability and purity of drinking water, cleanliness of school premises, sanitary toilets, healthy canteens, hygienic school facilities, and safe disposal of waste.

The extended immunization programme achieved remarkable success, mainly due to effective education information and awareness campaigns, which delivered appropriate community, cultural-context-based, focused messages through the appropriate mass media. The programme includes immunization against infantile paralysis, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, tuberculosis, measles, and epidemic hepatitis. In 1997, immunization against parotid gland infection was added to the list. In 1996, the nationwide coverage reached 99% of the child population.

The outcome of the programme included the following:

1. In 1997 not a single case of infantile paralysis was reported in the whole country. As noted earlier, primary health care, and maternal and child health care, reaches everyone, in every corner of the country, and birth and death records are maintained.
2. Eight cases of acute palsy were reported, which after careful etiological analysis, were found to be non-infantile paralysis.
3. No cases of newborn baby tetanus were reported in 1997. This disease has nearly been eradicated from the Sultanate.
4. No diphtheria cases were reported during 1997, while measles cases were reduced to 12, and whooping cough decreased to 73 cases in 1997.

The national immunization campaign in December 1996 was followed by a second campaign organized in November 1997.

In cooperation with the other authorities concerned, the MOH has launched information campaigns to reduce casualties resulting from various types of accidents that cause disabilities and human suffering.

The Training and Information Department of the MOH, in cooperation with the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour and Vocational Training, the Ministry of Education, and other organizations concerned, has made a consolidated effort to enhance the level of information, knowledge, and awareness of citizens by all available means.

The messages they want to spread include: the causes and prevention of disabilities, challenges faced by the disabled, how to cope with the daily requirements of the disabled, and methods of helping disabled children develop the abilities and skills needed to live with human dignity as useful members of families and society.

In order to consolidate the efforts of the various organizations concerned, a multisectoral national committee was formed jointly by the MOH and the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour and Vocational Training. The Committee is charged with the responsibility of:

1. Coordinating plans and programmes aimed at preventing disabilities in children, and facilitating the early diagnosis and treatment of childhood disabilities.

1. Developing training and re-training programmes for disabled children, facilitating their integration into the community, and providing them with the opportunity of fully participating in life with their peers.

The Al Khoud care and Rehabilitation Centre, run by the MOSALVT, provides accommodation, education and training for 156 disabled children.

Disabled child care centres in 11 Districts throughout the country provide services for 449 children. In addition to the District facilities served by 146 voluntary social workers, there are 175 Disabled Child Care Centres in 4 districts of Muscat run by the Association for the Welfare of the Handicapped Children.

The campaigns to eradicate diarrhoea in the Fourth Five-Year plan (1991–1995) achieved remarkable success. Only two mortalities due to diarrhoea were reported in 1997.

Health education is given a high priority in the Sultanate of Oman. Services are organized in most residential areas, and particular attention is paid to serving remote communities. Providing basic information to families regarding their health and nutrition is the fundamental objective. The publication and distribution of the Omani version of "Facts for Life" in 1996 was a landmark in health education. A new revised edition, with the addition of four new chapters including such topics as adolescent health, public health, genetically based disabilities, environmental and life patterns, and raising children in a family setting, was published and distributed in 1998.

During the 1997 health education campaign, a variety of publications, pamphlets and posters were designed, produced and distributed throughout the Sultanate. They covered topics such as: protection against infantile paralysis and AIDS, hygiene, protecting the environment, birth spacing, smoking, marriage between relatives, accidents, nutrition and food, children’s behaviour, infant nutrition, anaemia, and parental care of children.

Seminars and discussion groups were organized during 1997 on several important topics such as environmental hygiene and safe life skills.

Presently, the MOH is developing a more effective and comprehensive health awareness and education campaign. The messages and materials are designed taking into consideration the social customs, cultural values and modes of communication prevalent in the local communities. In order to ensure that the messages reach all members of society, health centres, local community social centres and schools are used as platforms to spread the message. The voluntary support group established by female volunteers in every village of the Sultanate also helps to deliver the campaign.

Birth spacing services launched in 1994 in the context of mother and child health and welfare included information and education sessions. Special examinations and lab tests were made available for women to determine better pregnancy schedules and regular check-ups. The campaign gained acceptance among women, so much so that over 65% of all women aged 30 years or under benefited from the services during 1997. As a result of the campaign, the fertility rate of Omani women declined spectacularly from 7.8 in 1985 to 4.8 in 1997. Normally these campaigns are organized each year in October through community classes, health centres and schools throughout the country.

The Government of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos has a constant policy of providing basic education to all citizens. In 1990, the Sultanate signed the Jomtien declaration of Education for All by the year 2000, and firmly recommitted itself to exert an all-out effort to achieve the goal of Basic Education for All.

Given the earlier history of widespread illiteracy and the lack of a well-established system of education, the authorities freely utilized all available means of communication to spread education to the masses. The growth of the oil-based economy brought affluence to the people, while technological breakthroughs during the 70s and 80s brought down the prices of electronic goods throughout the Gulf region to incredibly low levels. As a consequence, nearly every household had a TV and a radio, and most of the better-off households had more than one of each.

The government took due advantage of this situation and utilized electronic media – both TV and radio – to spread education and information, and to create an awareness of the importance of knowledge, health, child care, the conservation of nature, protecting the environment, women’s education, women’s role in social and economic development, and a host of other critical issues of national interest. In this sense, the Government had a strategic policy of employing electronic mass media for educational purposes.

From the outset of the Education Reform Plan in 1996/97, the Ministry of Education has revitalized its policy to utilize all sorts of mass media. The Ministry has a policy of balanced coverage of all aspects of the educational process.

The Educational Media aims at opening the windows to all that is good and conducive to raising the standard of education and thus leading the nation on the path of progress and prosperity.

The educational and cultural activities are conducted in the following fields:

1. School journalism;
2. School broadcasting;
3. Photo journalism;
4. Publication and printing.

In addition to this, various social, artistic, sports, theatrical and Scouting activities are organized at the school, regional , national and international levels.

In the first section of this report, it was stated that the goal of Education For All was implicitly included in the overall goals of the Human Resources Development strategy, which has been given a high priority in successive Five-Year Plans. The nineties have been covered by the Fourth (1991–95) and Fifth (1996–2000) Five-Year Plans.

The Fourth Five-Year Plan did not include any specifically designed national plan of action for education. The Ministry of Education, nevertheless, while continuing the quantitative expression of basic education to reach all school-age children, launched initiatives aimed at improving the condition of schools and providing basic input to schools. New school buildings were constructed, and existing buildings were extended to reduce the number of double-shift schools and replace temporary school buildings.

Short-term in-service training programmes for teachers, principals and inspectors were initiated. A national study was conducted to evaluate basic school curricula and textbooks. Improving schooling conditions included providing such essential educational facilities as libraries, general science laboratories, multipurpose rooms, and certain basic teaching/learning materials and equipment. At the same time, an effort was made to increase the supply of Omani teachers.

It is the Fifth Five-Year Plan that contains a thoroughly prepared comprehensive Plan of General Education Reform and Development, which is in its third year of implementation.

This section, therefore, appraises the effectiveness of several loosely connected projects and activities of the MOE and of some other government agencies, NGOs and the private sector on the one hand, and the crowning achievement in developing, designing and successfully launching the comprehensive education reform plan on the other.

Most projects carried out in the field of teacher training, school construction and the provision of essential school facilities were designed to address pressing contemporary issues. Each project was designed to address specific problems with a defined scope and adequate resource allocation. In hindsight, judging from all aspects, it would be fair to conclude that the objectives and targets of each project were tailored to the allocation of resources, and in this sense they were realistic enough to produce the desired effects. The benefits of such inputs are invisible and accrue over a long period of time, although there is a general feeling that the overall results of all the projects have been more than satisfactory.

The plan was designed by the MOE in collaboration with a team of highly experienced international experts, after years of deliberations taking the minute details of all aspects into consideration.

It may be called ambitious, perhaps, because it is future-oriented and reflects the highly cherished educational aspirations of a proud nation but, all the same, it is also quite realistic in the sense that its design is sound in every respect (every objective, activity, and task is crystal clear and annotated with step-by-step procedures of implementation), and its goals and targets are achievable.

It is fully endorsed by the strong political will and financial backing of the Government, and above all, it is highly appreciated and enthusiastically received by all segments of Omani society and supported by all sectors of the Omani economy.

Its phased implementation and stage-by-stage incremental expansion strategy during the first three years of its implementation has proved a spectacular success.

The accrued hands-on implementation experience has boosted the self-confidence of the implementation cadres, enhanced their motivation and built up the much needed national capacity to continue sustainable educational reform, and consequently to realize the ultimate national goal of human resources development in the Sultanate.

All the evidence surrounding the educational reform suggests that this is going to set a historical landmark in the Sultanate’s history of general education.

Education for All is a broad concept. Its scope transcends the formal education sector and cuts across the various other dimensions that govern the standard of living and work conditions prevailing in a society, and the general welfare of the people. Although the education sector as a provider of basic education plays a central role in EFA, the contribution of the health, social and economic sectors, as well as the participation of the private sector, has no less significance. Thus, the Government’s success in mobilizing the resources of different sectors, and in co-ordinating, to achieve the goal of EFA is no mean achievement in itself.

There is yet another dimension of the national educational achievement which refers to the maturation period of educational inputs and efforts. In view of the temporal dimension, one has to bear in mind that the achievements of early 90s were the result of earlier initiatives launched in the 80s. Even so, the accomplished design of the radical educational reform plan, which is touted as the greatest achievement of the education system, is the fruit of sustained efforts initiated in 1992/93 and fully orchestrated during 1994 and 1995. Also, among the multiple achievements of different kinds, it is hard to reach a consensus regarding which of them should take precedence over the others. The order of the presentation of some outstanding achievements in the following passages does not reflect their relative importance. Nevertheless, the education reform currently under way stands above all, and there can be no two opinions about it.

There is a common consensus of opinion that the launch of the Education Reform and Development Plan is the most significant achievement of the education system.

Having achieved the goal of universal access to primary education, the Education Reform Plan has attached top priority to raising the quality and relevance of basic education to enable it to meet the educational challenges of the 21^st century.

An analysis of the contents, structure and implementation strategy of the reform plan and evidence of the successful implementation of its first phase leaves no room for doubt over its sterling quality or successful completion or over the achievement of its objectives, especially when adequate resources have been earmarked in advance. Just to give a glimpse of the key elements, the plan has introduced the following radical changes, which are considered the crowning achievements of basic education:

5. Introducing English language at Grade 1 instead of Grade 5.

8. Increasing hours for mathematics and science.

Further outstanding achievements of the education system include

a) Providing free basic, secondary and tertiary education for all Omanis

b) Universal access to basic education

3. Eliminating gender disparity and increasing the participation of women in higher level decision-making
4. Bridging the gap in regional and rural/urban disparities
5. The Omanization of teachers and other educational staff.

Yet another major achievement in EFA is the elimination of gender disparity in education at nearly all levels (in preparatory, secondary and university stages, female enrolment, retention and graduation rates are higher than those of males) and increasing the participation of women in higher level, decision-making bodies.

Other major achievements the country can be proud of are in the field of maternal and child health, with immunization over 99%, maternal and child health care, universal coverage of students’ health by check-ups under the school health and health education programme (a collaborative initiative of the Ministries of Health and Education) – health examination covers all students entering primary, preparatory and secondary cycles.

In the health and population sector, a spectacular reduction in the crude birth rate, the total fertility rate and consequently the natural growth of the population rate is also considered a major achievement.

The Government has a longstanding policy of, and a firm commitment to providing free education for all its citizens. Strong political will combined with constant financial backing has been successful in overcoming any obstacles as and when they arose in the way of achieving the goal of Education for All. The global economic recession and the slump in oil prices, nevertheless, has had some adverse effects on all sectors of the Omani economy, including the education sector.

Repercussions in the largely oil-based Omani economy in the past have put budgetary constraints on the education sector, just as they have done on the other sectors of economy. In 1998, however, when other ministries suffered budget cuts, the budgets of the MOE and MOH were maintained at the same level. Lack of sufficient financial resources, at times, has led to the alteration of certain programmes, shifting priorities and postponement or cancellation of certain programmes and activities, and thus progress has slowed down. Since financial problems are inherent in the oil-dominated national economy, it is likely to continue rather than disappear in the foreseeable future.

The Government has entrusted the development of pre-school education entirely to the private sector and has taken initiatives to encourage the private sector to take responsibility for vocational training. The private sector’s response, however, has been rather cautious, and consequently the growth of pre-school education has remained rather stunted, especially when demand for pre-school education is high and is considered to be the fastest growing area. The reason partly seems to be embedded in the public’s heavy dependence in the past on the Government for the provision of educational and social services. There are, however, promising signs of increasing community interest and participation, in addition to private initiatives in the provision of education and social services to the community.

As a result of continued campaigns by the Government using appropriate media and the universal access of the electronic mass media, public awareness of the importance of education, maternal and child health and protecting the environment is on the increase, but knowledge alone does not guarantee change in behaviour.

Public demand for basic education is high, and community support for basic education is evident from the increasing public interest and community participation in all sorts of school and educational activities and events regularly organized at local, sub-regional, regional and national levels throughout the Sultanate.

Moreover, the qualitative reform which has introduced modern curricula, instructional materials and state-of-the-art instructional and self-learning technologies in the primary classrooms has been so enthusiastically received by all communities that the demand for enrolment in the reformed schools exceeds the availability of student places.

This report has already made several references to the political will and unflinching commitment of the Government towards achieving the goal of universal basic education and its centrality to the realization of Oman’s Vision: 2020.

The "Vision Statement" and the overall long-term strategy to realize the vision have been confirmed by Royal Decrees. Moreover, the Fifth Five-Year Plan – the first plan specifically designed to achieve the objectives of Vision: 2020 – has also been approved by Royal Decree. The Government has allocated sufficient resources, and various sectoral plans currently under way are making satisfactory progress.

The Government has invested heavily in the past in establishing a sound infrastructure for general education. The infrastructure included: the goals and philosophy of education, the structure of the basic education system, curricula, textbooks and materials, the structure of teacher education programmes, the structure of administration and management, school buildings and facilities, supervision and monitoring, assessment and evaluation, hierarchical channels and means of communication, in-service training, staff development and capacity building.

One of the major strengths of the education system is grounded in the national capacity for gradually accrued and cumulative learning, gained in the process of developing the country’s educational infrastructure.

Furthermore, the most valuable first-hand experience gained by the various Directorates and Departments of the Ministry of Education (both at central and regional management levels) in assessment, critical evaluation and thoroughly reviewing the education system has further enhanced the national capacity for continuously monitoring, reviewing and adapting the education system to the changing learning needs of Omani society. This has also been aided by the still more valuable experience of reconstructing each and every component of the entire general education system, working in close cooperation with teams of renowned world experts in different specializations.

The country’s capacity to plan for and provide world-quality basic education has been further boosted by: practical experience in the field of modern curricula design; the in-service training of teachers, inspectors and administrators in modern innovative methods of child-centred teaching supervision and administration; the decentralization of training; the implementation of reform in the field; and the continuous monitoring and formative evaluation of its implementation and impact.

The institutionalization and regionalization of the Education Management Information System (EMIS) has been partially achieved, and the interest of senior executives in making data-based decisions is constantly growing.

The fact that the private sector is becoming increasingly involved, and that the Ministry of Education has taken concrete steps to help the private sector expand preschool education and maintain high standards, indicates the Government’s resolve to develop and expand pre-primary education.

Inter-ministerial co-operation and co-ordination, between ministries and national and international NGOs further adds to the strength of the basic education system.

In the past, the efficiency and quality of the education system was affected by a shortage of technically skilled and trained staff in various specializations. As the Government has been giving priority to building an educated and technically-skilled Omani workforce, this situation is rapidly changing for the better.

A rapid turnover of technically-trained staff often negates the direct impact of capacity building through specialized technical training.

The Ministry of Education has introduced changes in its organizational and administrative structure with the intention of reinvigorating its administrative efficiency.

While the Government provides free basic education for all in terms of schools, free transportation to and from schools (for those who require it), and free textbooks to all students and adult learners, there is no statutory obligation on the part of the parents to send their children to school or to make alternative arrangements for educating their children.

In this respect, the Government has adopted a policy of gentle persuasion through sustained media campaigns.

The Government’s long-standing commitment to the policy of developing human resources through universal basic education and training, translated into a relentless effort to provide basic education for all, has produced laudable results over the past two decades.

This assessment refers to the progress made from 1991 onwards in the field of basic (especially primary) and secondary education, towards achieving the goals of access, equity, quality and efficiency of basic and primary education. Education for All encompasses besides basic education, adult literacy, preschool education and early childhood care and development, as well as essential skills training.

The basic education system reaches all school-age children throughout the country. Basic and secondary education is free for all, and the Government provides free textbooks, and transport for all school children.

If access to education is defined as the provision of school places, textbooks and transportation to all those school-age children whose parents are willing to send them to schools, then the Sultanate of Oman has already achieved the objective of universal access.

The provision of schools, textbooks and transportation on the part of the state, however, does not guarantee that all school-age children are attending schools, or receiving education by other means, unless parents respect the right of the child to education and take advantage of the educational opportunity provided by the Government for every child. In order to ensure the right of the child to basic education, the Government has an unwritten policy of enlightening parents and creating an awareness of the importance of education through continuous media campaigns.

The Government’s concerted effort has achieved a good measure of success, which is evident from the following data.

1. In 1997, the apparent intake rate in Grade 1 was 93.82% (93.24% female and 94.38% male), while the net intake rate was 74.97% (74.74% female and 75.20% male).
2. The gross primary enrolment rate (Grades 1–6, Omani and expatriate pupils combined) was 100.0% (97.3% female and 102.6% male), while the net primary enrolment rate was 88.1% (87.1 % female and 89.1 % male).
3. The gross basic enrolment rate (Grades 1–9) was 98.3% (96.3% female and 100.2% male), while the net basic enrolment rate was 88.8% (88.7% female and 88.9% male).
4. In terms of progress, gross primary enrolment increased from 93.8% in 1993 to 100% in 1997, while during the same period net primary enrolment increased from 81.05% to 88.1%.
5. Survival rate to Grade 5 is reckoned as an indicator of sustainable literacy. In Oman, 95.0% (94.5% female and 95.6% male) of children who enter Grade 1 successfully complete Grade 4 and enter Grade 5 after passing Grade 4 examinations in all the school subjects. Moreover, 92.13% (90.92% female and 93.29% male) survive to Grade 7, and 78.22% (82.51% female and 73.95% male) survive to Grade 9 (which used to be the final grade of basic education before the current reform). All enrolment statistics have been computed on total enrolments, which include both Omani and expatriate students in public and private schools, excluding expatriate community schools. In the 1997/98 scholastic year, 2.6% of the primary students (Grades 1–6) and 1.9% of the preparatory students (Grades 7–9) were expatriate.
6. The total number of students enrolled in basic and secondary classes has increased by 46.5%, from 361,315 in 1990/91 to 529,189 in 1997/98. During the same period, the number of schools increased by 28.0%, from 830 in 1990/91 to 1,062 in 1997/98. The number of teachers increased by 56.7%, from 15,513 in 1990/91 to 24,304 in 1997/98.
7. In terms of preschool education and early childhood care and development, the country – given that preschool education has been left to the private sector – has also made substantial progress, although a lot more needs to be achieved in terms of expanding early childhood care and preschool education.
8. The number of KGs has increased from 58 in 1990/91 to 132 in 1997/98, a growth of nearly 128% over 7 years. KG enrolment has increased 158%. At the same time, KG net enrolment (Omani children only) has increased from 2.45% in 1990/91 to 8.2% (7.7% female and 8.6% male) in 1997/98. This field, however, still largely remains to be expanded.
9. The Government has taken initiatives to encourage the private sector to become more heavily involved in the preschool education enterprise. The Ministry of Education provides teacher and supervisory training, and has recently constructed a preschool education curricula and learning materials. To this effect, UNICEF has supported the development of an Omani Teachers’ Guidebook to the preschool curriculum, which is also intended to serve as a major source for the development of two additional training books for preschool teachers.

In the area of health care and health education, an exemplary collaboration between the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health has achieved astounding success. There is now nearly 100% coverage of children’s immunization, and there is also health examination of all children entering the primary, preparatory and secondary cycles of education. The Omanized version of the Facts for Life book has appeared in its second and revised edition, and has been distributed to all Grade 10 students free of charge.

Intersectoral co-operation in health education and awareness programmes has produced phenomenal results, while the spectacular success of the birth-spacing programme has achieved equally incredible results in reducing the natural growth rate of the population from 3.7% to 2.6% within a short span of about three years.

Having largely achieved the coverage objectives through the rapid quantitative expansion of basic education, the Government then paid timely attention to critical issues related to the quality and efficiency of the education system and its relevance to the learning needs of a rapidly evolving information society and global cyber-economy on the threshold of the 21^st century.

In this field, the Government’s embarkation upon an ambitious radical reform and development plan for education is consensually considered a major achievement of the education system. Its adroitly constructed design and phased incremental implementation over 10 years, backed by adequate financial commitment, almost guarantees success. The education reform envisages upgrading the standard of Omani basic and secondary education to a level on a par with that of highly developed countries.

The implementation, which started in Grades 1–3 in 17 basic schools selected from all regions, and is currently in 42 schools, will expand horizontally to add the number of schools and vertically to higher Grades on an incremental basis as the new curricula, textbooks and instructional materials are prepared, and teachers and administrators become trained in innovative child-centred teaching/learning techniques and the use of the multimedia learning technologies needed for reform.

The key characteristics of the basic education reform include:

1. substantially increased learning time in terms of more school hours each day and more school days in a year
2. the introduction of information technology and life skills as new school subjects in all grades
3. greater emphasis on maths and science and the modernization of curricula
4. the introduction of English from Grade 1
5. the use of learner-centred, experiential, constructivist approaches aimed at developing critical thinking, creativity, problem solving and higher level cognitive skills, and the abilities of students.

To achieve these objectives in the classroom, teachers and administrators are being trained in a decentralized system of in-service training, while each school is provided with a learning resource centre equipped with computers and multimedia learning technologies.

Meanwhile, six teacher training degree colleges have been established to produce high quality teachers well-versed in modern instructional methodologies, and new school buildings are being constructed to eliminate double-shift schools.

The elimination of double-shift schools is a huge challenge. Nearly 72% of all public schools in 1997/98 operated under the double-shift system.

The Omanization of the teaching force, and reducing dependence upon expatriate teachers, has been another challenge confronting the Government.

In 1990/91, only 28% of teachers were Omani. Since then, the determined efforts of the Ministry of Education to produce more teachers for all stages and particularly to meet the target of 100% Omanization of primary school teachers, has produced positive results. By 1997/98, over 93% of all primary teachers were Omani.

Progress has also been made in the field of preparatory and secondary teachers. In the preparatory cycle, the percentage of Omani teachers has increased from 9% in 1990/91 to 26% in 1997/98, and in the secondary cycle the percentage of Omani teachers has increased from 7% to 21% during the same period. On the whole, the share of Omani teachers has increased from 28% to 57%.

The MOE has achieved remarkable success in eliminating gender disparity at all levels of education. In the preparatory and secondary cycles, female enrolments exceed male enrolments. More interestingly, girls’ survival rates to higher Grades of basic cycle performance is substantially better than that of boys, as well as in repetition and dropout rates in all Grades (girls’ repetition and dropout rates are lower than those of boys). Moreover, promotion rates for female students are higher than those of their male cohorts.

When the education system was expanding rapidly to reach all school-age children, the demand for student places far exceeded the supply of schools. In order to cope with the ever increasing demand for schools, the Ministry of Education resorted to double-shift schools. In 1990/91, there were 779 public schools housed in 527 buildings, with 252 of the schools in the afternoon shift, i.e. 504 schools (64.7% of all public schools) were operating under double-shift conditions.

The Ministry, however, is employing all available means to overcome this problem as soon as possible. From 1991 to 1997, the Ministry of Education added 3,175 classrooms to existing school buildings and constructed 194 new school buildings. In 1997, nevertheless, 72% (688 out of 958) of all public schools were running under the double-shift system.

The Ministry of Education, however, has a determined policy to root out the afternoon shift. School construction is one of the key components of the education reform plan, under which 73 new school buildings were constructed and 100 classrooms were added to existing buildings in 1998 alone.

The goal of basic education for all remains unfulfilled until adult illiteracy is eradicated from the entire population. The Ministry initiated adult literacy and adult education programmes early in 1973. These programmes, due to various reasons, did not gather momentum.

The national census data of 1993 is the only reliable source of information on adult literacy rates. According to the 1993 census data, 41.2% of the population aged 15+ was illiterate, of which 64.3% were women. It is generally thought that illiteracy has been almost eliminated from the primary school-age population (below age 12) and is briskly diminishing from the younger population, but the illiteracy rate runs high in the population aged 40+. It is also recognized that there are significant gender and regional disparities in illiteracy rates. Illiteracy rates are higher for females and rural areas than for males and urban areas.

In the absence of any adult literacy survey conducted after the 1993 census, there is no credible source of information about the current situation of adult literacy. A national man power survey was conducted by the Ministry of National Economy in 1996. The results of this survey, recently supplied by the MONE, have shown an almost 10% decrease in 15+ illiteracy rates in the 3 years from 1993 to 1996.

The Ministry has been considering the policy of integrating the education of children with special learning needs with the mainstream schools for many years. It runs two schools for the education of children with special learning needs. In 1997/98, 445 students (287 males and 158 females) ranging from 6–29 years of age were housed in the two schools. Another group of 61 students (51 males and 10 females) was getting special education in specialized schools in Kuwait and Bahrain. Recently a new institute has been established for blind people.

Given the present situation, this area of education needs further expansion.