Food security projects, affordable housing and emergency response programmes are among numerous “social expenditures” identified by the Omani government that are eligible for funding assistance under a new ‘Sustainable Finance Framework’ unveiled by the Ministry of Finance recently.
The framework – the first of its kind in the Gulf region – classifies eligible “social expenditures” into seven broad categories, funding towards which will come from a pool of sustainable finance, raised through the issuance of, for example, Green Bonds, Social and Sustainability Bonds, Loans and sukuk.
Funding assistance for eligible initiatives will come in the form of subsidies, grants, loans, support schemes, incentive mechanisms, investments expenditures, operating expenditures, tax expenditures and intervention expenditures. These are targeted at initiatives that are aligned with Oman’s commitments to Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) and social welfare programme.
Separately, the Framework also seeks to support dozens of ‘green’ initiatives and Transition and Climate Adaptation goals.
Eligible for ‘sustainable finance’ are numerous initiatives distributed across the following seven categories of ‘social expenditures’ in the Sultanate of Oman:
Affordable Basic Infrastructure: Included in this category are expenditures that improve the reliability of electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure to ensure the long term resilience of infrastructure in rural areas and coastal areas; Expenditures to protect the security of clean drinking water supplies, and support the long term resilience of water and sanitation infrastructure; and Electricity and water subsidies for low-income households which meet the eligibility criteria of the National Subsidy System (NSS).
Education Access: This category covers expenditures to improve access to public, free, subsidized or nonprofit educational facilities (schools and universities); Construction and upgrade of schools, universities, vocational training facilities or housing for teachers to provide essential access to public education for the population; Provision of education materials and equipment.
Healthcare Access: Covered in this sector expenditures to improve access to public, free, subsidised or nonprofit healthcare facilities. It includes the construction and upgrade of public hospitals, healthcare centers, elderly care centers, rehabilitation centers for disabled persons; the production of medical supplies, medical equipment, medicines and vaccines to treat and prevent the spread of infectious diseases or health disasters; and projects related to emergency response to a crisis which may be a natural disaster or health disaster.
Affordable Housing: It covers multiple initiatives aimed at ensuring access to safe and affordable housing, including condominiums program for creation of housing complexes for low-income families; Housing assistance program which provides grants to build or renovate an existing house for low-income families; and Housing loan program with interest-free housing loans for low-income citizens.
Employment Generation, MSME support: Included in this category are expenditures related to supporting Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) or unemployed persons; Government schemes to support unemployed persons who are out of work involuntarily such as temporary financial assistance and programs aimed at supporting reemployment under the National Employment Programme; and Government schemes related to training and reskilling for unemployed youths under the National Employment Programme.
Socioeconomic Advancement and Empowerment: Initiatives aimed at empowering the most vulnerable groups are covered in this category. They include – Projects to reduce discrimination, improve equality for women and improve their access to job opportunities; Projects to promote training and capacity building for sustainable fishing practices; and Financial support programs targeted at: Low-income families, orphans and widows, people with disabilities, children, and the elderly.
Food Security: Covered in this sector are expenditures related to the development of fish markets for small-scale fisheries; Technical and financial assistance for smallholder farmers on sustainable agriculture practices (such as the provision of subsidized or free climate resilient seed varieties better suited for Oman’s climate to combat desertification, salinity, and droughts; and modern irrigation techniques to conserve water such as drip irrigation).
Oman Daily Observer