Muscat: On Monday, the Shura Council's Food and Water Security Committee approved its final report, titled 'Marketing Agricultural Products: Current Reality and Future Prospects,' in preparation for presentation and discussion during the Council's upcoming sessions.
In its study, the Committee presents a thorough assessment of Oman's current agricultural product marketing environment, highlighting the gap between present circumstances and future goals.
It also evaluates current agricultural marketing techniques and determines their effectiveness in helping the industry and maximizing its contribution to the national economy.
One of the main recommendations is the development of a comprehensive national agricultural marketing plan to improve value chain efficiency, support local production, and expand access to domestic and foreign markets.
Such actions will help to ensure food security and increase the economic viability of the agricultural industry.
Additional recommendations are anticipated to be addressed during the review of the report in the upcoming Council sessions.
During the current annual session, the Committee concentrated on translating this wish into reality by creating thorough working papers, gathering data and statistics, and conducting a succession of meetings and hearings with pertinent stakeholders.
These interactions aimed to get knowledge on the facts of agricultural marketing in Oman, the significant hurdles facing the industry, and proposed development strategies.
It is important to highlight that the Committee's inquiry is carried out in accordance with Article (59) of the Oman Council Law, which states: "Without prejudice to the provisions of Article (27) of this law, the Shura Council may, on its own initiative, express desires to the government regarding matters related to public services and facilities, as well as means to improve and develop their performance, or on challenges facing the economic sector and ways to promote development, whenever the Council deems it in the public interest. "
The Committee also agreed on its stance toward the 2024 annual report of the Ministry of Agricultural, Fisheries, and Water Resources.
This occurred during the Committee's seventh meeting of the second annual session (2024–2025) of the tenth term of the Council, which was chaired by Khoweidem Mohammed al Ma'shani, Head of the Committee, and attended by Committee members.
