The inhabitants of the area of Oman have long prospered on Indian Ocean trade. In the late 18th century, a newly established sultanate in Muscat signed the first in a series of friendship treaties with Britain. Over time, Oman's dependence on British political and military advisors increased, but it never became a British colony. In 1970, QABOOS bin Said al-Said overthrew the restrictive rule of his father; he has ruled as sultan ever since. His extensive modernization program has opened the country to the outside world while preserving the longstanding close ties with the UK. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with all Middle Eastern countries.

Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman, and Persian Gulf, between Yemen and UAE
21 00 N, 57 00 E
Middle East
total: 212,460 sq km ; land: 212,460 sq km ; water: 0 sq km
slightly smaller than Kansas
total: 1,374 km ; border countries: Saudi Arabia 676 km, UAE 410 km, Yemen 288 km
2,092 km
territorial sea: 12 nm ; contiguous zone: 24 nm ; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strong southwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south
central desert plain, rugged mountains in north and south
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m ; highest point: Jabal Shams 2,980 m
petroleum, copper, asbestos, some marble, limestone, chromium, gypsum, natural gas
arable land: 0.12% ; permanent crops: 0.14% ; other: 99.74% (2005)
720 sq km (2003)
1 cu km (1997)
Total: 1.36 cu km/yr (7%/2%/90%) ; Per capita: 529 cu m/yr (2000)
summer winds often raise large sandstorms and dust storms in interior; periodic droughts
rising soil salinity; beach pollution from oil spills; very limited natural fresh water resources
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling ; signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
strategic location on Musandam Peninsula adjacent to Strait of Hormuz, a vital transit point for world crude oil
3,204,897 ; note: includes 577,293 non-nationals (July 2007 est.)
0-14 years: 42.7% (male 698,461/female 670,793) ; 15-64 years: 54.6% (male 1,026,686/female 723,712) ; 65 years and over: 2.7% (male 47,534/female 37,711) (2007 est.)
total: 18.9 years ; male: 21.5 years ; female: 16.5 years (2007 est.)
3.234% (2007 est.)
35.76 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
3.78 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
0.36 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female ; under 15 years: 1.041 male(s)/female ; 15-64 years: 1.419 male(s)/female ; 65 years and over: 1.26 male(s)/female ; total population: 1.238 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total: 18.28 deaths/1,000 live births ; male: 20.96 deaths/1,000 live births ; female: 15.46 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total population: 73.62 years ; male: 71.37 years ; female: 75.99 years (2007 est.)
5.7 children born/woman (2007 est.)
0.1% (2001 est.)
1,300 (2001 est.)
less than 200 (2003 est.)
noun: Omani(s) ; adjective: Omani
Arab, Baluchi, South Asian (Indian, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi), African
Ibadhi Muslim 75%, other (includes Sunni Muslim, Shi'a Muslim, Hindu) 25%
Arabic (official), English, Baluchi, Urdu, Indian dialects
definition: NA ; total population: 81.4% ; male: 86.8% ; female: 73.5% (2003 est.)


conventional long form: Sultanate of Oman ; conventional short form: Oman ; local long form: Saltanat Uman ; local short form: Uman ; former: Muscat and Oman
monarchy
name: Muscat ; geographic coordinates: 23 37 N, 58 35 E ; time difference: UTC+4 (9 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
5 regions (manatiq, singular - mintaqat) and 4 governorates* (muhafazat, singular - muhafazat) Ad Dakhiliyah, Al Batinah, Al Buraymi*, Al Wusta, Ash Sharqiyah, Az Zahirah, Masqat*, Musandam*, Zufar (Dhofar)*

1650 (expulsion of the Portuguese)
Birthday of Sultan QABOOS, 18 November (1940)
none; note - on 6 November 1996, Sultan QABOOS issued a royal decree promulgating a basic law considered by the government to be a constitution which, among other things, clarifies the royal succession, provides for a prime minister, bars ministers from holding interests in companies doing business with the government, establishes a bicameral legislature, and guarantees basic civil liberties for Omani citizens
based on English common law and Islamic law; ultimate appeal to the monarch; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
21 years of age; universal; note - members of the military and security forces are not allowed to vote
chief of state: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said al-Said (sultan since 23 July 1970 and prime minister since 23 July 1972); note - the monarch is both the chief of state and head of government ; head of government: Sultan and Prime Minister QABOOS bin Said al-Said (sultan since 23 July 1970 and prime minister since 23 July 1972) ; cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the monarch ; elections: none; the monarch is hereditary
bicameral Majlis Oman consists of Majlis al-Dawla or upper chamber (70 seats; members appointed by the monarch; has advisory powers only) and Majlis al-Shura or lower chamber (84 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms; body has some limited power to propose legislation, but otherwise has only advisory powers) ; elections: last held 27 October 2007 (next to be held in 2011) ; election results: new candidates won 46 seats and 38 members of the outgoing Majlis kept their positions; none of the 20 female candidates were elected
Supreme Court ; note: the nascent civil court system, administered by region, has judges who practice secular and Shari'a law
none
none
ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-77, GCC, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
three horizontal bands of white, red, and green of equal width with a broad, vertical, red band on the hoist side; the national emblem (a khanjar dagger in its sheath superimposed on two crossed swords in scabbards) in white is centered near the top of the vertical band
chief of mission: Ambassador Hunaina bint Sultan bin Ahmad al-MUGHAIRI ; chancery: 2535 Belmont Road, NW, Washington, DC 20008 ; telephone: [1] (202) 387-1980 through 1981, 1988 ; FAX: [1] (202) 745-4933
chief of mission: Ambassador Gary A. GRAPPO ; embassy: Jameat A'Duwal Al Arabiya Street, Al Khuwair area, Muscat ; mailing address: P. O. Box 202, P.C. 115, Madinat Sultan Qaboos, Muscat ; telephone: [968] 24-643-400 ; FAX: [968] 24-699771





Oman is a middle-income economy that is heavily dependent on dwindling oil resources, but sustained high oil prices in recent years have helped build Oman's budget and trade surpluses and foreign reserves. Oman joined the World Trade Organization in November 2000 and continues to liberalize its markets. It ratified a free trade agreement with the US in September 2006, and, through the Gulf Cooperation Council, seeks similar agreements with the EU, China and Japan. As a result of its dwindling oil resources, Oman is actively pursuing a development plan that focuses on diversification, industrialization, and privatization, with the objective of reducing the oil sector's contribution to GDP to 9 percent by 2020. Muscat is attempting to "Omanize" the labor force by replacing foreign expatriate workers with local workers. Oman actively seeks private foreign investors, especially in the industrial, information technology, tourism, and higher education fields. Industrial development plans focus on gas resources, metal manufacturing, petrochemicals, and international transshipment ports.
$61.21 billion (2007 est.)
$29.38 billion (2007 est.)
5.3% (2007 est.)
$19,100 (2007 est.)
agriculture: 2.2% ; industry: 38.3% ; services: 59.5% (2007 est.)
920,000 (2002 est.)
agriculture: NA% ; industry: NA% ; services: NA%
15% (2004 est.)
NA%
lowest 10%: NA% ; highest 10%: NA%

4% (2007 est.)
20.3% of GDP (2007 est.)
revenues: $13.82 billion ; expenditures: $13.67 billion (2007 est.)
2.8% of GDP (2007 est.)
dates, limes, bananas, alfalfa, vegetables; camels, cattle; fish
crude oil production and refining, natural and liquefied natural gas (LNG) production; construction, cement, copper, steel, chemicals, optic fiber
3.2% (2007 est.)
11.89 billion kWh (2005)
fossil fuel: 100% ; hydro: 0% ; nuclear: 0% ; other: 0% (2001)
8.661 billion kWh (2005)
0 kWh (2005)
0 kWh (2005)
740,000 bbl/day (2006 est.)
66,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)
733,100 bbl/day (2004)
15,440 bbl/day (2004)
5.506 billion bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
18.98 billion cu m (2005 est.)
8.795 billion cu m (2005 est.)
10.19 billion cu m (2005 est.)
0 cu m (2005)
795.2 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
$3.785 billion (2007 est.)
$22.68 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
petroleum, reexports, fish, metals, textiles
China 23.6%, South Korea 17.9%, Japan 10.9%, Thailand 10.7%, South Africa 7.7%, UAE 6.3% (2006)
$11 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
UAE 22.4%, Japan 16.5%, US 8.1%, Germany 5.4%, India 4.3% (2006)

$7.004 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
$3.483 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
$NA
$NA
$16.16 billion (2006)
Omani rial (OMR)
OMR
Omani rials per US dollar - 0.3845 (2007), 0.3845 (2006), 0.3845 (2005), 0.3845 (2004), 0.3845 (2003)
calendar year
$30.68 million (2005)
278,300 (2006)
1.818 million (2006)
general assessment: modern system consisting of open-wire, microwave, and radiotelephone communication stations; limited coaxial cable ; domestic: fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership both increasing; open-wire, microwave, radiotelephone communications, and a domestic satellite system with 8 earth stations ; international: country code - 968; the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) and the SEA-ME-WE-3 submarine cable provide connectivity to Asia, the Middle East, and Europe; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean), 1 Arabsat
AM 3, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999)
1.4 million (1997)
13 (plus 25 repeaters) (1999)
1.6 million (1997)
.om
3,763 (2007)
1 (2000)
319,200 (2006)

137 (2007)
total: 7 ; over 3,047 m: 4 ; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2007)
total: 130 ; over 3,047 m: 2 ; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 51 ; 914 to 1,523 m: 35 ; under 914 m: 34 (2007)
2 (2007)
gas 4,072 km; oil 3,405 km (2006)

total: 34,965 km ; paved: 9,673 km (includes 550 km of expressways) ; unpaved: 25,292 km (2001)

total: 2 ships (1000 GRT or over) 12,155 GRT/7,244 DWT ; by type: chemical tanker 1, passenger 1 ; registered in other countries: 1 (Panama 1) (2007)
Mina' Qabus, Salalah

Sultan's Armed Forces (SAF): Royal Army of Oman, Royal Navy of Oman, Royal Air Force of Oman (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Sultanat Oman, RAFO) (2007)
18 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)
males age 18-49: 719,871 ; females age 18-49: 508,621 (2005 est.)
males age 18-49: 581,444 ; females age 18-49: 435,107 (2005 est.)
males age 18-49: 26,391 ; females age 18-49: 25,466 (2005 est.)
11.4% (2005 est.)

boundary agreement reportedly signed and ratified with UAE in 2003 for entire border, including Oman's Musandam Peninsula and Al Madhah exclave, but details of the alignment have not been made public


current situation: Oman is a destination country for men and women primarily from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and India who migrate willingly, but may subsequently become victims of trafficking when subjected to conditions of involuntary servitude as domestic workers and laborers; there have been occasional reports that expatriate children engaged in camel racing may transit or reside in Omani territory ; tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - Oman is placed on the Tier 2 Watch List because of a lack of evidence of increasing efforts to combat severe forms of trafficking in persons in 2005
