©
Flickr@Kendo1938
Oman Travel Guide
©
Flickr@Kendo1938
If you find yourself here on a trip to Oman, it's that the country's government has succeeded in its objective to attract tourists so as to detach itself a little from its almost exclusive dependence on petrol.
If you've chosen the Middle East region for your holiday, and more precisely you've opted for a trip to Oman, you're going to be able to make the most of your stay in the Sultanate to see that the economic situation of the country is a model of the sort.
Thanks to its reforms, the Sultanate of Oman was perfectly able to protect itself from the effects of the global financial crisis and the growth displayed by the country is even nowadays at around 5%. Oman's GDP is over 80 billion dollars and the GDP per year and per capita is at around a little over $40,300 (£26,500).
However, the economic situation though now still flourishing remains overly dependent on petrol and on its reserves which are unfortunately modest and not endless. The government is completely aware of this situation and has tackled the problem head on by emphasising the development of different sectors, including the tourism sector.
The agricultural sector is really minimal and only counts for less than 2% of the country's GDP. The sector produces fruit and vegetables, such as dates, bananas, lemons, potatoes, tomatoes, sorghum, wheat and coconuts. Oman is however obliged to import lots of meat, milk and rice. Fishing has experienced some success thanks to the exportation of grouper, kingfish, tuna, sardine, shark, lobster and prawn.
Petrol is the pillar of the Sultanate's economy. It represents 80% of the GDP alone. Faced with the inevitability that its reserves will run out, the country has had to turn towards the exploitation of gas and minerals such as copper, silver, and gold.
Tourism is in full development and the government is doing everything so that this sector becomes the worthy successor of petrol one day. The priority has turned towards luxury tourism and if Oman wants to continue to see a number of tourists every year, the country will have to confront the geo-political problems of the region especially the danger that the border with Yemen constitutes.
