Muscat – Oman is set to create around 300,000 job opportunities over the next five years as government spending on education and healthcare gathers pace under the 11th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030), officials said.
Thousands of new positions are expected to be generated as early as 2026, driven by the accelerated expansion of schools, universities and hospitals aimed at meeting rising demand and supporting long-term social development.
H E Dr Said Mohammed al Saqri, Minister of Economy, said the previous plan period (2021–2025) resulted in the creation of about 175,000 jobs, adding that the new plan targets an additional 300,000 opportunities across the public and private sectors.
“This translates into an annual average of around 60,000 jobs, including about 10,000 in the government sector and 50,000 in the private sector,” he said.
H E Dr Nasser Rashid al Maawali, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Economy, said private sector employment opportunities for Omanis are expected to be concentrated mainly in retail, accounting for over a third of projected jobs, followed by construction. Industry, tourism and transport are also expected to contribute significantly to employment growth.
Education and healthcare infrastructure remains a key driver of job creation. Twenty-two new government schoolsare scheduled to open in 2026, with a further 42 schools planned in later phases. At the same time, construction of six government hospitals is nearing completion, with some facilities expected to open this year.
New schools are under construction across several governorates and upgrades under way at existing facilities. These include improvements to laboratories and educational resource centres, replacement of more than 45,000 air-conditioning units and school furniture items, and the rollout of digital learning platforms.
Teacher recruitment and professional development remain a priority, with about 4,000 qualified teachers expected to join the sector. Higher education projects include new buildings at Sultan Qaboos University and the Universities of Technology and Applied Sciences in Sur and Ibri, alongside campus rehabilitation and the installation of specialised laboratories.
In healthcare, Oman is moving ahead with the construction of six hospitals and nine health centres across the sultanate. Hospital projects include facilities in Salalah, Samail, Madha, Khasab, Al Namaa and Jaalan Bani Bu Ali, aimed at expanding access to both specialised and general medical services.
Nine health centres and additional facilities, including a dialysis unit in Barka, are also under development as part of efforts to enhance preventive and curative healthcare in line with Oman Vision 2040.
