The Shura Council today hosted Eng. Said Hamoud Al Ma’awali, Minister of Transport, Communications and Information Technology, who outlined his ministry’s policies, plans and programmes in the field of transport and infrastructure.
In the ministry’s statement at the Shura Council’s 12th regular session of the 9th Term, the minister discussed the policies, plans and programmes within the context of the 10th Five Year Plan and measures to activate it in line with Oman Vision 2040, the Development Budget 2023 and strategic approaches to the communications and information technology sector.
In his speech, Al Ma’awali said that the ministry is supervising vital sectors including transport, communications and information technology that will have a prominent role in achieving the goals of “Oman Vision 2040”.
Emphasis is laid on the priorities of the current stage of the Vision, the establishment of an empowering infrastructure that is capable of keeping pace with developments and modifications, he explained.
The minister added that the ministry is embarked on drafting a number of regulatory and legislative frameworks for the governance of its activities, besides improving the satisfaction of those benefiting from its services.
He pointed out that the ministry gave directives to implement a number of strategic road projects during the current five-year plan. These projects, he said, include the addition of a third and fourth lanes to the Rusayl – Bidbid road (Part 1), whose accomplishment rate stood at 60% as at the end of 2022. The project assumes special significance and it is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year (2023), said Al Ma’awali.
The minister added that the Ministry is making progress in its plan to complete the remaining parts of Adam-Thumrait dual-carriageway—a 400-km stretch.
He said that the ministry monitored the implementation of projects that were suspended over the past few years due to contractors’ inability to complete the projects. The works were later floated, assigned and accomplished during the current five-year plan.
These include the final part of A’Sharqiyah Expressway and Al Abela- Al Fayyad) road, the remaining tasks of Al Batinah Expressway, a project to raise the efficiency of Sinaw-Mahout-Duqm road and another to complete the remaining part of Adam-Haima road, said the minister.
The Ministry is finalizing contractual procedures for another set of projects, which include the designing and implementation of Daba-Khassab road with Lima link, the designing and implementation of the remaining parts of the Al Batinah Coastal Road (Phase 1), Barka link and A’Suwaiq link, said the minister.
He added that the ministry awarded a project for designing the dual-carriageway between the Wilayat of Al Kamil W’al Wafi and the Wilayat of Ja’alan Bani Bu Ali.
The minister explained that the Ministry is currently preparing executive plans for new projects that were approved recently.
These include the dualization of the Farq- Hai Al Turath-Izki road, the dualizaton of Raysut – Al Mughsayl road and Seeh Al Khayrat – Shasr road, the completion of dualization of roads leading to the Empty Quarter or Rub Al Khali border crossing (Phase 1), in addition to floating consultancy studies for paving Shahab – Asaib – Rakhyout road, said the minister.
Al Ma’awali explained that the ministry took steps to finalize the awarding of periodic maintenance contracts for the implementation of networks of asphalt and dust roads in most governorates of Oman for a period of 5 years to the tune of more than RO 53 million.
The minister said that tasks of road restoration works, in the aftermath of the climatic condition (Shaheen cyclone), were 80 percent complete.
Meanwhile, the Ministry signed a memorandum of understanding with an international company to complete economic and financial studies for the construction of the Masirah Bridge and Dam, said the minister.
He added that discussions are underway to explore the extent to which the private sector is keen to invest in the construction of Thumrait -Salalah truck road and other projects.
Al Ma’awali pointed out that the ministry is currently focusing on investments in road networks in Oman, particularly those linking sea ports with airports, as well as the activation of the logistics sector.
The ministry is joining hands with offices of governors to re-distribute part of the road network (dust roads and asphalt roads) to enable the governors to exercise their role in running the governorates in a more effective manner, said the minister.
He stressed that the Ministry is preparing to issue a law on roads that grants administrative powers to the authorities supervising roads. This is in addition to updating the regulation on protecting roads that was issued under Ministerial Decision No. 155/2017, he said.
Al Ma’awali also affirmed that his ministry is embarked on introducing integrated solutions in the field of transport to ease road jams and ensure the smooth flow of traffic.
Source: Oman News Agency