Five OIA companies win Excellence Awards
MUSCAT: Oman Investment Authority (OIA) announced the winners of the second edition of the OIA Excellence Awards. The awards recognize efforts to promote a culture of continuous improvement, celebrate outstanding companies that contributed to achieving national objectives, and encourage competitiveness in performance enhancement.
'Omantel' won in the Growth and Job Creation category for achieving a revenue growth compared to last year and investing 18% of its assets in new projects—achieving 98% of its target. The company also succeeded in creating job opportunities for Omanis and replacing expats with Omanis, raising its Omanization rate to 94%.
'ITHCA Group' excelled in the Financial Sustainability and Performance category for leading the 2024 financial sustainability assessment by achieving the highest improvement in financial sustainability indicators among all companies and delivering a positive financial performance during 2024.
'Omran Group' was awarded the excellence award in Private Sector and SMEs Empowerment category for achieving a high growth rate in the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). In addition, it exited from investments in favor of the private sector, and reached a rate of 56% in total investment through the private sector.
'OQ Group' received the excellence award in the In-Country Value (ICV) and RDI category for achieving the highest average spending on ICV as a percentage of total supply chain expenditure during 2023 and 2024. The Group also excelled in the number of supplier development programs, ring fencing initiatives, and research, development, and innovation (RDI) projects.
'ASYAD Group' won in the Project Excellence category for the 'Duqm Container Terminal' project. The project scored high efficiency in adherence to budget, timeline, and safety standards. The project also achieved a high Omanization rate exceeding 70%, and maximized in-country value by sourcing 43% of project expenditures through local suppliers and companies.
Abdulsalam Al Murshidi, President of OIA, said the Excellence Awards recognized the significant improvement achieved by OIA companies in their revenues in 2024 compared to 2023. They also implemented new investments through approved projects and expanded operational initiatives that supported the local market. In addition, there was a consistent focus on employment and raising Omanization rates.
The companies also increased their strategic partnerships with the private sector and supported small and medium enterprises (SMEs) through various initiatives, contract allocations, and development and training programs. They maximized their local impact by increasing local procurement spending and supporting local suppliers through supplier development programs and initiatives to localize products and services. As a result, total spending on SMEs reached RO 265.5 million, over 50 innovative projects were developed, and ICV rate increased to 32% in 2024 compared to 23% in 2023.
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