MUSCAT // Oman yesterday said it would increase its national spending by 9 per cent in next year's budget to create 80,000 jobs, a key demand of protesters who took to the streets in the normally tranquil Sultanate earlier this year.
Addressing the 84-member Shura Council, the finance minister, Darwish Ismail Al Balushi, proposed spending of 10 billion Omani rials (Dh95bn) and forecast revenues of 8.8bn rials - 21 per cent higher than this year.
"The higher spending will boost employment and create about 30,000 jobs for students expected to graduate in 2012, and 50,000 more jobs will be given those who are already on the waiting list," he told the council in an address carried live on television.
The budget for 2012 is based on an estimated average oil price of US$75 (Dh275) a barrel.
This year's deficit was 850 million rials, with oil averaging at $58 a barrel. Mr Balushi said oil production was forecast for 917,000 barrels next year, up from 870,000 this year.
Those who were involved in the protests welcomed the spending boost to create jobs for Omanis, but doubt the government can hit its target.
"The figure is too big to create jobs in just a year. They created about 40,000 jobs this year, just after the protests, from the 70,000 jobs promised," Mohammed Marhoon, a leading activist, told The National.
"I cannot see how the government would be able to create more jobs in 2012 because the private sector is reluctant to open up enough opportunities since it prefers cheaper labour from expatriates."
Two people died in the industrial city of Sohar in February when security forces fired on stone-throwing demonstrators; mainly unemployed youths demanding more jobs and better pay.
But another former activist said the higher spending showed the government was serious about honouring its jobs' pledge.
"It is a positive step, but the government alone cannot create all these jobs," said Hareb Al Mahrizi, a former activist.
"They must force the private sector to offload expatriates to create job opportunities for graduates. If it fails, then there will be another backlog being pushed forward to another year."
About one million of Oman's 2.7 million people are expats, largely from the Indian subcontinent.
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Funchal via Lisbon, with a connecting flight with Air Portugal. Economy class returns cost from Dh3,845 return including taxes.
The trip
The WalkMe app can be downloaded from the usual sources. If you don’t fancy doing the trip yourself, then Explore offers an eight-day levada trails tour from Dh3,050, not including flights.
The hotel
There isn’t another hotel anywhere in Madeira that matches the history and luxury of the Belmond Reid's Palace in Funchal. Doubles from Dh1,400 per night including taxes.
MATCH INFO
CAF Champions League semi-finals first-leg fixtures
Tuesday:
Primeiro Agosto (ANG) v Esperance (TUN) (8pm UAE)
Al Ahly (EGY) v Entente Setif (ALG) (11PM)
Second legs:
October 23
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
MATCH INFO
New Zealand 176-8 (20 ovs)
England 155 (19.5 ovs)
New Zealand win by 21 runs
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 390bhp
Torque: 400Nm
Price: Dh340,000 ($92,579
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 380hp at 5,800rpm
Torque: 530Nm at 1,300-4,500rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Price: From Dh299,000 ($81,415)
On sale: Now
Six tips to secure your smart home
Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.
Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.
Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.
Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.
Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.
Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
BUNDESLIGA FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Cologne v Union Berlin (5.30pm)
Fortuna Dusseldorf v Borussia Dortmund (5.30pm)
Hertha Berlin v Eintracht Frankfurt (5.30pm)
Paderborn v Werder Bremen (5.30pm)
Wolfsburg v Freiburg (5.30pm)
Bayern Munich v Borussia Monchengladbach (8.30pm)
Sunday
Mainz v Augsburg (5.30pm)
Schalke v Bayer Leverkusen (8pm)
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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