Oman Explores Trade Expansion Opportunities in African Food Markets

Dialogue Session Reviews Investment and Trade Opportunities in the African Food Sector

Muscat:  The Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones, in cooperation with the National Program for Private Sector Development and Foreign Trade “Nazdaher”, organized a specialized dialogue session to review investment and trade opportunities available in the food sector in the African market.

The session forms part of national efforts to promote the products of factories operating in special economic zones, free zones and industrial cities, enhance trade exchange between the Sultanate of Oman and African countries, and open new horizons for the Omani private sector.

During the session, participants reviewed the findings of a specialized analytical study examining food commodity imports in a number of selected African countries. The study identified goods in which the Sultanate of Oman has the potential to increase trade volumes, whether through exports or imports.

The session provided factory owners, entrepreneurs and investors in the Omani private sector food industry with an opportunity to learn about the initiative, its objectives, and the food products with high commercial potential that can be marketed in African markets.

The dialogue session witnessed wide participation from several government and private entities, including the Nazdaher Program, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion—represented by Oman Exports and the Center for Strategic Partnerships and Foreign Trade—as well as the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

In a statement, Muhannad bin Hamoud Al-Riyami, Senior Foreign Trade Development Specialist at the National Program for Private Sector Development and Foreign Trade “Nazdaher,” explained that a specialized team verified these opportunities through field visits to the United Republic of Tanzania and the Republic of Kenya. These visits resulted in identifying promising opportunities and confirming the interest of the African private sector in the targeted products.

He noted that the objective of these visits is to enable Omani companies to benefit from the identified opportunities and to increase trade exchange between the Sultanate of Oman and the selected African countries.

Al-Riyami added that ten products were selected, including meat, sugar, flour and dates, which are produced in the Sultanate of Oman, with some being re-exported to leverage the Sultanate’s ports and airports as regional logistics hubs.

The session was attended by His Excellency Engineer Ahmed bin Hassan Al-Dheeb, Vice Chairman of the Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones, along with a number of officials from the Nazdaher Program and the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry.