The Shura Council bureau reviewed this morning (Tuesday) the responses from the council's standing committees regarding the activation of the Council's contents of the royal speech for the opening sitting of the first annual session of the Eighth Term of the Oman Council for the year 2023. The proposed mechanisms for these contents were discussed, in addition to reviewing the response of His Excellency the Minister of Labour to the report of the Youth and Human Resources Committee of the Council regarding the request to employ female graduates in the field of forensic sciences, which included the ministry's efforts to coordinate with government entities to employ graduates in this field.

The bureau also reviewed the expressed desire to implement national service for general diploma graduates or school dropouts for various reasons, mainly to provide them with opportunities to learn values, principles, and skills for personal and professional development. The national service is also seen as an opportunity for youth to develop their skills in various technical fields, and the office decided to refer this matter to the relevant committee.



The meeting also discussed a message received from one of the council members regarding the issue of mining aviolite carbon rock, which reported that a company has been permitted to inject carbon waste into the earth to generate green hydrogen. The company has drilled wells up to 3 kilometres deep underground. The office decided to refer the matter to the Health and Social Committee of the Council for their input.

This occurred during the regular eighth sitting of the Shura Council Office for the first annual session (2023-2024) of the Tenth Term of the Council, chaired by His Excellency Sheikh Khalid bin Hilal Al Maawali, the Council's President, and attended by the honourable members of the council's office and His Excellency Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Nadabi, the Council's Secretary-General.

The meeting agenda also included a review of the request for information submitted to His Excellency the Minister of Economy regarding the strategic programs of the Tenth Five-Year Development Plan (2021-2025). This includes the council's request to be informed about the implementation status of the strategic programs related to the national priorities of Oman Vision 2040, totaling 430 programs, the number of programs achieved in all vision axes, and the financial cost of these programs.

The bureau also reviewed the request for information submitted to His Excellency the Chairman of the Omani Investment Authority regarding some airports in the Sultanate of Oman. The council requested information about the total cost of all airport packages and facilities, details of the future operational plan for Al Duqm and Salalah airports, and reviewed the request for information submitted to him regarding the assets and investments of the authority, the holding companies, subsidiary companies, project 


plans of the authority, and plans for projects of the Oman Future Fund for the next five years.

Additionally, the meeting considered the question addressed to His Excellency the Minister of Housing and Urban Planning regarding rejected housing assistance requests, inquiring about the reasons for rejecting citizens' requests for housing assistance and the reasons for the delay in processing those requests.

The meeting also reviewed the inquiry addressed to His Excellency the Minister of Transport, Communications, and Information Technology regarding the operational date of the lighting of the Eastern Expressway and the reasons in case there is no intention to operate it.

Furthermore, the meeting discussed the expressed desire to accept graduates of the College of Sharia Sciences studying remotely in educational qualification courses for various reasons, primarily to accommodate the outputs of the College of Sharia Sciences (remote learners), which are on a continuous rise. The office also addressed the need to find solutions for the increasing number of job seekers in this sector and took appropriate measures to address these desires.


Council Reports:
The bureau also reviewed the report of the delegation participating in the Abu Dhabi session of the Parliamentary Conference of the World Health Organization held on February 25, 2024. The report included an overview of the mentioned session, its objectives and purposes, the timeline of accompanying events, and concluded with recommendations and outcomes.