Oman Oil Company and OPALs ‘my job, my oath’ programme reaches more than 1,200 participants by end of year

Oman Oil Company (OOC), the Sultanate’s energy investment arm has recently renewed its partnership for the third consecutive year with Oman Society for Petroleum Services (OPAL), the non-profit organisation responsible for promoting the Oil & Gas industry’s standards and best practices, to offer dedicated educational workshops as part of the capacity building programme ‘My Job, My Oath’. This year’s sessions span over the entire month of December benefiting an estimated 400 participants from all over the Sultanate through centralised training in the Governorate of Muscat. With more than 800 participants over the last two years, the programme is expected to exceed the mark of 1,200 beneficiaries by end of year.

Since its launch in 2011, ‘My Job, My Oath’ has been building the capacity of new joiners to the private and government sectors and shedding light on their role in developing the country. It covers topics related to career development, principles of a healthy work environment, increasing work productivity and Omani labour law with an overall objective of supporting the development of human capital. It targets government employees, and members of NGOs, as well as school and university students.

“The ‘My Job, My Oath’ workshops are geared towards addressing the needs, questions, and challenges that Omani youth face when joining the workforce,” said Al Mutassim Al Sariri, Head of Corporate Sustainability at Oman Oil Company. “The trainers are not only explaining employment and capacity building concepts alongside the attendees’ rights and responsibilities, but also suggesting easy-to-follow steps for them to follow after the training to achieve their professional goals and assume their roles as active contributors to the economic diversification efforts of Oman.”

Al Sariri added, “While raising awareness about particular aspects of the working environment as a means of involving and developing the youth, Oman Oil Company is also enhancing its contribution to the In-Country-Value programme by awarding training to the Muscat-based company, First Capital Financial and Management Consulting.”

Musallam Al Mundhari, Acting CEO of Oman Society for Petroleum Services, said “We are offering these interactive workshops in collaboration with Oman Oil Company as a forum for emerging young professionals to discuss and develop effective communications’ strategies to achieve their career objectives. We are helping them learn how to maximise professional opportunities by developing concrete skills related to the topics of peer networking, roles and obligations in the workplace, as well as work ethics, and Omani labour law with the aim of creating a positive and productive work environment.”

OOC and OPAL provide the workshops to achieve and meet the growing requirements for skilled professional individuals in the oil and gas sector and related industries. This initiative is in line with OOC’s Corporate Sustainability strategy of implementing programmes benefiting the community, focusing on training job seekers for employment, promoting and supporting Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), as well as building capacity.