Championing Oman to Singaporeans

SINGAPORE'S non-resident ambassador to Oman, Teng Theng Dar, is enthusiastic about the country he is representative to as he effuses about Oman's attractions. "To appreciate Oman, you have to come and visit the country," he says. The country has much to offer. The attractiveness of Oman is multi-faceted, from its plentiful land for investment and development to the vast scenery it offers for tourism opportunities.

Investment options in Oman range from infrastructure development to investments in manufacturing facilities, he says. Each of Oman's four major cities of Muscat, Sohar, Duqm and Salalah have their own attractions. Meanwhile sector-wise, oil and gas, tourism-related and infrastructure investments in rail networks are all areas which provide business opportunities, he said.

In addition, the legal and bureaucratic framework is very conducive to encouraging investment in the country. "I've had a lot of very positive feedback that the supporting mechanisms are in place and things are being run according to the rules," Mr Teng said.

Through years of exchanges between Oman and Singapore, Mr Teng has seen the Omanis observing the development of the Singapore model and have adapted that in Oman as well. "As a result, there are quite similar policies in the way that they encourage foreign investors," he noted.

However there are some minor cultural differences. Mr Teng very candidly gave a friendly warning to Singapore parties thinking about going into the country that the speed of responses may be relatively slower compared to Singaporean standards.

Beyond business opportunities, Mr Teng is equally enthusiastic about the people and the culture of the country. The renowned Omani openness and hospitality are qualities that he keeps talking about.

Relating his own personal experience from his dealings in the country previously, he said: "The great thing about doing business in Oman is that you end up not just doing business but also becoming friends. I think this is a very positive and rewarding experience," he said. Mr Teng gave the example of how he is still in contact with his former business partners even though he does not do business in the country anymore.

"In terms of hospitality, helpfulness and tolerance - this is something very clear and obvious about Oman too, and really beyond what words can express," Mr Teng said, once again encouraging people to visit the country to experience this for themselves.

He also relates another experience demonstrating not only Omani hospitality but also the grace and generosity of the people. When he was invited to a meal at a business partner's home, Mr Teng was somewhat concerned at the huge size of the serving portions, knowing that it would be impossible to finish. Only after the meal did he realise that this was done deliberately so that any extra food could then be taken to the mosque to be shared with the less fortunate.

"This was a fantastic experience for me, and was made even more poignant by the fact that it was done without any fanfare - and I didn't even know about it until after the meal when my host specifically summoned his son to deliver the food to the mosque," he related.

In terms of the bilateral relationship, Mr Teng said that relations have been very smooth throughout the years and continues to grow. A key component, he said, was the Oman-Singapore Joint Committee, which was formed 10 years ago and has helped to facilitate the exchange of views and boost understanding between the two sides.

This has helped boost ties at both the government to government and business to business levels and resulted in big investments from Singapore companies such as Sembcorp's plant in Salalah as well as ST Marine's contracts to build vessels for the Oman navy.

The next step is to boost people to people relations, Mr Teng said, and initiatives are already in place with Temasek Polytechnic and the Omani Higher College of Technology signing a memorandum of understanding on technical education as well as cultural groups doing similar exchanges.

The first of these was a group of 15 performers from the Sri Warisan Som Said Performing Arts group which participated in the Muscat Festival earlier this year.

"We are now preparing for more of these exchanges although they are essentially at a people to people level. We help to facilitate this, and we hope this will grow in future," he said.

Yet another example is Oman's Outward Bound School which was set up just a couple of years ago and has been supported in its development and training programmes by the Singapore Outward Bound School. This is yet another opportunity for interaction between the youths of the two countries, Mr Teng said.