Oman Competitivess Forum 2013 by Ithraa Oman

ideas Oman COmPeTITIveneSS FOrum 2013 For further information please contact us: Ithraa PO Box 20, PC 117, Wadi Kabir, Sultanate of Oman. Tel: +968 2462 3300, Fax: +968 2462 3335 info@ithraa.om www.ithraa.om

ideas I’ve always believed that talent attracts capital more eﬀectively and consistently than capital attracts talent.

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

michael Bloomberg new York’s mayor

Introduction The Oman Competitiveness Forum (OCF13) was crafted and organized by Ithraa and held 1-4 December 2013 at the al Bustan Palace Hotel, muscat, Sultanate of Oman. The three-day Forum brought together top ﬂight government and business community leaders from around the world to assess the state of Oman’s competitiveness and explore areas where the sultanate could improve and compete in today’s global marketplace. according to several leading global business and economic indices, Oman is highly ranked and performs well in many areas1. However, over the past few years a host of countries and cities – particularly in asia – have grown both in stature and economic clout. research suggests that 90% of the world’s fastestgrowing metropolitan economies are now located outside north america and europe2. Indeed, in an increasingly globalized world, companies, capital and human talent have a wide choice of where to invest, work and live. It is in this context that OCF13 panelists shared their insights and discussed strategies for nurturing the next generation of ideas, businesses, processes, resources and policies required to improve Oman’s competitiveness. This document provides a snapshot of the ideas and concepts presented at OCF13 – on panels and in break-out sessions. It is intended to positively stimulate debate on national competitiveness. Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

a changing world The Team at ITHraa recognizes the world is changing and what is emerging from today’s economic situation is the need for countries like Oman to become increasingly competitive.

Branding reﬂects the identity of people, families, religion, architecture, culture, art, cuisine, heritage, values, work, education, geographic location, climate, history and economic ties.

The nature of competitiveness is changing too, it can no longer be based on low costs facilitating the manufacture and export of goods and services. recognizing and responding to this shift, Oman’s national competitiveness will be based on its success in a range of key areas: l the sourcing and creative application of knowledge l the development of a skilled and flexible workforce l the building of sustainable and high-quality infrastructure and transport services l the creation of an education system responsive to the needs of the twenty-first century l the crafting of a regulatory framework led by informed and entrepreneurial-minded civil servants l the provision of a range of public services that support the growth of the sultanate’s business community. The countries and cities that are most able to handle the challenges of the future will be those that are best able to attract and retain the world’s most talented people. a place that can attract the next Cirrus Logic or PG Photonics will benefit disproportionately from the skilled and talented people these businesses will bring, and these

in turn will help make that place more competitive and economically attractive. In short, countries and cities that are able to attract and retain the best and the brightest will benefit from the outstanding contributions and significant outputs of those individuals. as new York’s mayor michael Bloomberg said: “I’ve always believed that talent attracts capital more effectively and consistently than capital attracts talent.” and, of course, those countries and cities least able to attract such skills will struggle competitively in the years ahead. If we want to retain talented Omanis working in the sultanate, as well as attract talent from around the world, then prioritizing quality living, education, sustainable development, information communication technology, infrastructure, work environment and lifestyle is essential. Oman is determined to respond to the changes around us and ensure our offer is second to none; our competitive edge will guarantee our place on the global stage and driving this is central to Ithraa’s agenda. as Peter Wake ellyard noted: “the future is not a probable place we are being taken to, but a preferred place we are creating. The tracks to it are not found and followed, but made by laying and constructing the trail.”

We are interested in competitiveness according to Harvard academic, michael Porter, competitiveness is not just a function of the capacity and competence of the individual ﬁrm, but resides, too, in the general milieu or locational environment that surrounds it. moreover, competitive advantage rests not so much in natural resource endowments as it does in forms of social and political organisation. There exists, in this way, huge possibilities for constructing new relationships between business and government in fostering a spirit of civic enterprise to upgrade national competitiveness.3 We are interested in competitiveness because it has a direct bearing on the wellbeing of the residents of Oman. a country that loses its competitiveness, while it may not decline and disappear like a ﬁrm, can stagnate and develop socio-economic problems.

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

What do we mean by competitiveness? In our view, national competitiveness is best assessed in respect to Oman’s ability to: l attract firms to locate l assist local firms to grow l attract investment l attract and retain talent. In order for Oman to remain competitive and attract investment and talent, as well as assist local firms to flourish, it must have: l a growing economy l a sound legal system l an inviting and productive culture l good infrastructure l sound policies on business and enterprise, the environment, sustainability, healthcare, education, construction, information communication technology and public transport. OCF13 panels and break-out sessions recognized that these are the factors that influence the global movement of capital, companies and talent and will impact on Oman’s competitiveness.

Places are often shaped by, and reﬂect the identity of their: people, families, religion, architecture, culture, art, cuisine, heritage, values, work, education, geographic location, climate, history and economic ties.

session 1 The importance of identity to a successful country or city cannot be over-stated. most winning cities, for example, are the ones with a strong sense of identity, for example, London, Berlin, Sydney, Tokyo, Paris and new York.

In fact, places have long felt a need to diﬀerentiate themselves from Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

Branding has assumed centre-stage as countries and cities are increasingly forced to compete against each other for investment, talent and visitors. This has caused policy-makers across the world to ask: “What is a brand? How should it be developed and with whom? Which communication tools should be used? and how should the brand be managed?” a brand strategy would bring signiﬁcant value to Oman. It would also help increase competitiveness, resulting in a positive impact on investment, jobs, residents and visitors. Higher returns on investment in real estate, infrastructure and events. Coherent national development, as the physical, social, economic and cultural aspects combine to deliver the brand promise and greater pride in the Sultanate as residents, businesses and institutions experience a new sense of purpose and direction. and as Jonathan Gabay, founder of Brand Forensics suggests: “Branding is not just about the logo but the intricate details - as small as clean streets and as deep as getting a city’s residents to feel proud to be brand ambassadors. When citizens are proud, visitors are encouraged to ﬁnd out what the fuss is all about and then tell the world.”

national identity and vision

establishing a unique identity is no easy task though. Places are often shaped and reﬂect the identity of their people – and these identities are built on the self - who they are, families, religion, art, architecture, culture, cuisine, heritage, values, work, education, geographic location, climate, as well as historic and economic ties.4

each other, to assert their individuality in pursuit of various objectives. The conscious attempt of governments to shape a speciﬁcallydesigned place identity and promote it to markets, whether external or internal, is as old as civic government itself.

Producing a positive image is essential for Oman if it is to promote itself as a destination for people to live, work, play and visit.

Fact not ﬁction Branding is all about marketing Oman’s assets domestically and internationally. It is important that this process be based on fact rather than ﬁction. If we attempt to manufacture a brand, instead of creating an environment that will promote itself, we are doomed to fail. most successful places have a brand that has developed organically - Italy is fashion, Brazil is football, France is cuisine and Germany is engineering. For many countries though, it is impossible to sum up the brand in a word – they are multi-faceted and evolving. Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

as part of the link between Oman’s brand offer and its identity, it must ensure that the brand message both points to a future perspective and remains anchored in the true story of the sultanate. Without a brand, Oman will be less able to shape its own image. all our decisions, from buying an everyday product in the supermarket to relocating a company, are based on rationale as well as emotions. Places are just like companies - those with a strong brand find it much easier to sell their products and services and attract talent, visitors and investment. Basically, branding is a tool that can be used by Oman to define itself and attract positive attention in the midst of global information overload. unfortunately, there is the common misconception that nation branding is a communications strategy, a strap-line and logo. It is much more than this. It is a strategic process for developing a long-term vision for Oman that is relevant and compelling to key audiences. ultimately, it is the long-term vision that will influence and shape the positive perceptions of Oman. The Oman brand is its Dna, what it is made of, what it passes from generation-to-generation. It is authentic and indicates what makes it different from others.

Strong brands attract talent, visitors and investment. Country brands: Germany – engineering Brazil – Football France – Cuisine.

vision Oman’s need to develop a long-term vision - thinking about what defines it, what it aspires to be, identifying target markets, how it will achieve its ambitions and how it intends to create a dynamic environment that will attract and retain investment and talent as well as grow existing businesses has to be on the agenda. In this regard, Omani stakeholder involvement is key to any successful branding exercise. Government, it was noted, cannot act alone but requires input and ownership by Oman’s business community, civil society and residents. as such, stakeholders will need to breakout of existing silos and work together. In brief, a common vision for Oman’s future will have to be agreed upon and set of actions defined if a brand strategy is to be formulated. It cannot be bought off-the-rack. Four dimensions for any Omani visioning process would include: an ambition for the future

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

l l l

a collective desire a shared value system several medium-term strategic goals.

an Omani vision would be created by: l identifying present problems l recognizing past successes l exploring wishes for the future l defining goals for the future l identifying the resources available and the key actors involved in realizing the established goals l constructing the vision and consequent action plan. In exploring and determining Oman’s vision it is important we: l establish the values held by various communities, actual and aspirational l agree upon an identity that capitalises on Oman’s cultural, social, economic, physical and historic strengths l recognise the need for effective branding of that identity and those values. This process would involve defining themes and setting strategies. It might also include the production of a brand manifesto to act as a rallying point. Landmark events such as major sporting events, international conferences or entertainment festivals could also alter perceptions about Oman and showcase its virtues.

Talk us up Once Oman’s brand has been developed, it would need to be promoted and communicated to target groups. Traditional media is still very much part of this mix with approaches varying from press relations to obtain editorial coverage in targeted publications or on Tv channels, to pure advertising. media recognition is vitally important to the success of developing Oman’s brand. It is crucial that references to Oman in the international media are increased. By using media – traditional and social - promoting the good things that are happening in the sultanate would undoubtedly enhance Oman’s brand value. The increasing signiﬁcance of social media was also discussed – Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

channels that oﬀer Oman the opportunity to communicate with a younger, more tech-savvy audience who may be harder to access through traditional media.

Competitiveness is entrepreneurship. In the european union 85% of net new jobs in the private sector are created by Smes.

Speciﬁc events, where cultural, sporting or economic activities are hosted, would also be useful in promoting Oman’s message to the various target groups.

ambassador network Stakeholder involvement in the sultanate’s brand development is crucial to ensure continuity and shared vision. using stakeholders - members of the sultanate’s business, government, sports, cultural and youth communities becoming brand ambassadors – this would not only help in gaining their support for the Omani brand but could be a great tool to spread the sultanate’s messages internationally.

session 2 enterprise The key to Oman’s competitiveness is entrepreneurship. The successful places of the future will be those that engender an environment in which creative and innovative individuals and organizations can gather, grow and thrive. Jane Jacobs: “The basic idea is to use whatever commercial strengths and resources a locality already has, but that it has been neglecting, wasting or overlooking.”5 new companies, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (Smes), represent the most important source of new employment for Oman. In the european union (eu) 85% of net new jobs in the private sector are created by Smes.6 They also contribute to more than half of the total value-added created by businesses in the eu. 08

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However, it is not simply a matter of encouraging the spirit of enterprise, but also of creating a framework conducive to project generation and development. Countries and cities that develop strong pipelines of entrepreneurial talent – and help these innovators bring ideas to fruition through a collaborative, well-networked support environment will be successful. rosabeth moss Kanter, Director of Harvard’s advanced Leadership Initiative: “enhanced linkages and collaborations can enrich the business ecosystem so that more ideas can surface, more job-creating enterprises can be developed, more companies can ﬁnd skills and innovation, and more enterprises can increase their capabilities to grow and compete in global markets.”7 Panel discussions suggested that any work to enhance Oman’s competitiveness should focus on linkages between universities, research organizations and the business community, clustering and stocks of social capital, as well as capitalizing on the sultanate’s natural attributes. The need for Oman’s business community to reinvent itself through structural and microeconomic adjustments was also raised. In today’s knowledge-driven economy, the ability to transform information into insight in response to market movements is core to sustainability and business success. While the majority of business owners view organisational agility as a competitive necessity, actual business readiness is more mixed. many believe their organizations to be at a competitive disadvantage because they are not agile enough to anticipate movements in the global market. Therefore, policies designed to foster enterprise should enable companies to respond more quickly and eﬀectively to problems in relation to the enhanced mobility of capital, management, talent and technology. If Oman’s response is inadequate or too late to capitalize on new opportunities it will be by-passed. an increasing number of Omani initiatives are moving in this direction and creating the much needed ‘enterprise buzz’. For example, the research Council’s (TrC) work in funding science, social and cultural research. as the guardian of Oman’s research infrastructure, TrC supports the resources, organizations and talent that can best meet national research priorities. Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

From its inception, TrC has invested uS$90 million in the national research and innovation eco-system in projects such as Innovation Park muscat (IPm) – the sultanate’s ﬁrst science park which is dedicated to energy, food and biotechnology, water, environment and health science. This initiative is planned to launch in 2015.

encourage small business growth and increase employment opportunities.

In addition to TrC, the newly-created Sme authority, national Business Centre (nBC)8 and Knowledge Oasis muscat (KOm), Oman’s ﬂagship technology park, are further examples of Oman’s work in the entrepreneurship space9. as each of these programs strives to support entrepreneurs, scientists, researchers and innovators, they learn from and with one another. For instance, in helping Oman’s schools teach students to become tomorrow’s leaders and change-makers and in discovering strategies to support entrepreneurial activity in Oman’s universities and ensure that talent, research, science and technology transition successfully into communities across the sultanate. Organizations such as the Sme authority, TrC, nBC, IPm and KOm are also discovering the programs, physical spaces, events and investment strategies that spark innovation and help accelerate the growth and connection of local entrepreneurs. moreover, they are beginning to understand the metrics and realistic methods to measure impact. The challenge is to better connect policy-makers, the media and corporations to the entrepreneurial conversation these organizations are creating.

Home grown talent It is a reality that a small amount of home-grown entrepreneurial talent will have a disproportionately stimulating effect on Oman’s business environment. By definition, only a few start-ups will become extraordinarily successful and policy-makers need to communicate a strong message to those firms about how important they are to Oman’s future, and that the right environment will be created to help them thrive. In this regard, a broad platform to support entrepreneurs has to be developed. moreover, greater effort needs to be made to make Oman a more attractive place for talented entrepreneurs, innovators and 10

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creative people to live and work in. What can be done to encourage small business growth and increase employment opportunities? OCF13 suggested four broad ideas:

develop connections between businesses and the people and organizations that can help take them to the next stage – for example, forging stronger ties between universities, business associations/groups and service providers.

more training If Omani Smes are to grow as well as attract and retain talent then greater emphasis needs to be placed on training and development initiatives. Businesses that invest in staff typically have lower employee turnover, which is associated with higher customer satisfaction, which in turn is a driver of profitability. another important driver is manager proficiency - good managers determine if people stay or go and this is also influenced by training and development. In an effort to develop a more educated workforce, Smes should consider the introduction of mentoring programs, career counseling, as well as supporting employees with undergraduate and postgraduate study. The positive influence of training and education on employee satisfaction, performance and retention, as well as the benefits of having a better skilled workforce, should not be overlooked. now is the time for Omani Smes to ramp-up professional training efforts, the pursuit of which will boost national competitiveness.

economic gardening Pioneered in Littleton, Colorado, in conjunction with the Centre for the new West, economic Gardening was introduced to deal with the sudden erosion of economic conditions following the downsizing of Littleton’s largest employer.10 It has, over the years, emerged as a prototype for a rapidly expanding movement of like-minded economic developers looking for new methods to generate sustainable economic growth for local communities. The three basic elements of economic Gardening are: l provide critical information needed by businesses to survive and thrive l develop and cultivate an infrastructure that goes beyond basic physical infrastructure and includes a quality of life, a culture that embraces growth and change and access to intellectual resources including qualiﬁed and talented employees 12

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

The idea of economic Gardening was the result of research carried out by mIT’s David L. Birch that indicated the vast majority of all new jobs in any local economy were produced by small, local businesses. Based on Dun & Bradstreet data for the years 1969, 1972, 1974 and 1976 Birch discovered that businesses with fewer than 20 workers created four times as many new jobs as companies with more than 500 employees.11 The recruiting coups created major newspaper headlines, but they were a minor part, often less than 5% of job creation in most local economies.

Growth-oriented businesses economic Gardening focuses on nurturing ‘second stage’ growth companies - growth-oriented businesses with external market potential that have moved beyond the start-up stage.12 a space, many Omani Smes occupy. Typically, second stage companies employ 10-99 people and bring in at least uS$1 million in revenue each year. research suggests second stage companies can be large job generators because of their capacity to grow. For example, in Littleton, economic Gardening has helped entrepreneurs double the job base from 15,000 to 30,000 and triple retail sales tax from uS$6 million to uS$21 million over the past 20 years.13 and according to an economic impact analysis of Florida’s pilot economic Gardening Program, GrowFL, companies who participated created an average of 5.2 net new jobs per company.14

Smes need assistance with accounting, pricing, marketing, branding, customer service, training, product design and packaging.

Given the success of economic Gardening, it is suggested that greater emphasis be placed on building and supporting local Omani Smes. For start-ups and young businesses, we need to continue developing and improving Oman’s entrepreneurial networking, business incubator services, start-up funds and entrepreneurial education – these should all be made priority areas.

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

Linking universities and business

Second stage Smes employ 10 - 99 people, with at least uS$1 million in revenue each year and are large job generators.

Policy-makers and academic institutions are often unaware of the type of academic support that could potentially foster job generation in the Sme space. more than anything else, local Smes need assistance with accounting, pricing, marketing, branding, customer service, training, product design and packaging. Oman’s tertiary sector has this know-how. It is important that greater eﬀort be made to connect university expertise with local Smes.

is time to shift the focus back to the customer and away from shareholder value. The shift necessitates a fundamental change in our prevailing theory of the ﬁrm. The current theory holds that the singular goal of the corporation should be shareholder value maximization. Instead, companies should place customers at the centre of the ﬁrm and focus on delighting them, while earning an acceptable return for shareholders.”15 Could this approach to customer service not be adopted by more banks?

Funding Smes

Promoting Smes

Commercial banks and investors have historically been reluctant to service Smes for a number of reasons, these include: l they are regarded as high-risk borrowers due to insufficient assets and low capitalization l they are vulnerable to market fluctuations and suffer high mortality rates l high administrative/transaction costs of lending or investing small amounts can often make Sme financing an unprofitable business.

Time is one of the scarcest resources policy-makers have. However, time must be made to support and promote Oman’s entrepreneurial community. For example, regular ‘Breakfast meetings with Decisionmakers’ could be held with diﬀerent groups of entrepreneurs to solicit ideas on how Oman can better cater to their needs.

as a result, commercial banks are often biased toward large corporate borrowers, who provide better business plans, present more reliable ﬁnancial information and are perceived to have a better chance of success and higher proﬁtability for banks.

It was apparent from the Panel’s discussions that key to any successful Omani enterprise development campaign is the attitude that Smes are the country’s backbone and that Oman must do whatever it can to help them thrive. This idea could potentially be taken forward by the Origin Oman campaign with an emphasis placed on strengthening the existing ‘buy local’ culture. International studies have shown that for every uS$100 spent locally, 68 of those dollars remain in the local economy. Those dollars, in turn, translate into jobs.

Customer is king To compete effectively in the Sme financing sector, banks need to provide financial services that meet the specialized needs of Smes while coping with the risks and costs associated with this type of servicing. To achieve this, banks should consider adopting separate strategies to service Sme customers. Internationally, banks are becoming more customer-oriented, providing packages of financial services tailored to meet specific Sme needs. In addition, banks will have to work harder on their Sme proposition, train more specialist staff and build better networks of small business advisers. This approach has the potential of improving bank - Sme relations, increasing the profitability of providing financial services to it, as well as strengthening Oman’s Sme base. rotman School of management’s roger martin has suggested: “it 14

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a ‘Small Business Thursday’16 initiative could be launched, whereby every second Thursday of every month is designated as a day when citizens are encouraged to purchase goods and services from Omani Smes. Creating and sustaining a campaign of this type requires a mix of creative, education and citizen engagement - whether that is professionally produced Tv and radio public-service announcements, a website or social media. Imparting the importance of local Smes and their impact on Oman’s competitiveness requires more than simply issuing a monthly press release. Local media, which needs to be fully engaged, could, for instance, be encouraged to donate air-time and ad space to support the initiative. a question: How can we, the sultanate, serve Smes better? Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

session 3

Copenhagen, new York, Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong will pay dividends for residents, government and visitors alike.

Growth and sustainability The earth’s urban population will nearly double by 2050, requiring the construction of hundreds of new cities. China is already building the equivalent of a rome every few weeks to absorb the 400 million migrants streaming in from its rural communities. The question facing us is not whether to build cities from scratch, but how? and nowhere is this dilemma more pressing than in asia.

Sustainability means getting people to change their behaviour by using fewer resources, adjusting consumption patterns, altering daily habits and thinking long-term. However, delivering sustainability, whilst accommodating the pressures of demand for growth, remains a challenge. Putting sustainability at the top of the agenda is what will diﬀerentiate winning places over the coming years.

It was apparent from panel discussions that smart growth means planning for what lies ahead. There are many examples of countries and cities that have expanded rapidly without any kind of planning and the end result is often chaos. We, therefore, need to be forward looking, planning for growth and changing populations and the impact this has on transportation, education, health and many other aspects of our daily lives.

Liveable communities

Sustainable cities only succeed when they have sustainability at the heart of the planning process, rather than as an add-on when many of the problems are already deeply ingrained. Some of the key issues that need to be addressed in the early stage of urban development include: l minimizing the overall urban area coverage l minimizing the net material output l maximizing the potential use of renewable or recyclable materials and energy inputs l optimizing the opportunities for recycling within the urban area l minimizing the overall ecological footprint by integrating advanced environmental principles into decision-making processes l co-operation and engagement of diﬀerent stakeholders in problem solving l investment in infrastructure to ensure Oman’s city centres remain accessible, attractive and vibrant locations both day and night remains a major challenge but is recognized as being an extremely cost-eﬀective investment mechanism. Keeping the heart of cities alive, as can be seen in 16

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Policy-makers, planners and residents around the world are looking to create more ‘liveable communities.’ ‘Liveable’ in the sense that they provide residents with opportunities to enjoy a high quality of life by oﬀering them a variety of housing options and making it possible to walk, bike or take public transportation to get to work, school, shopping and use recreational facilities.17

Oman’s population is 3,949,000. World-wide more than 6.25 billion people will be living in cities by 2050.

Green, multimodal mobility systems such as networks of pedestrian paths, bicycle lanes and public transport, in combination with other community components that include high density housing and mixed-use buildings and neighbourhoods; and the use of renewable energy generated from sun, water and wind, can all make Omani communities more liveable. The next step is for policy-makers, planners and residents to ﬁnd out - speciﬁcally at the local level what kind of innovations and actions are necessary to make their communities more liveable and implement them wherever possible.

Climate change Global carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions from fossil-fuel combustion reached a record high of 31.6 gigatonnes (Gt) in 2011, according to preliminary estimates from the International energy agency. This represents an increase of 1.0 Gt on 2010, or 3.2%. Coal accounted for 45% of total energy-related CO2 emissions in 2011, followed by oil (35%) and natural gas (20%). This data puts the world ﬁrmly on the path toward at least 3 degrees of warming by the end of the century and possibly as much as 4 degrees. a disastrous scenario. many cities are taking action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

and achieve climate safety. The most commonly identiﬁed reduction activities are ﬁscal incentives and building standards, but cities are also taking on major infrastructure overhauls like transport, that include designated bus and taxi lanes, pedestrian areas and cycling networks as well as renewable energy and district heating/cooling.

Worldwide CO2 emissions reached a record high of 31.6 gigatonnes (Gt) in 2011, an increase of 1.0 Gt since 2010.

Discussions highlighted the fact that London aims to have 100,000 electric vehicles on its streets by 2020; Cambridge plans to retroﬁt 40,000 buildings before the mid-way point of the twenty-ﬁrst century18; and austin, Texas has a zero waste plan for 2040. The challenge facing Oman is raising public awareness vis-à-vis reducing the size of the sultanate’s collective carbon footprint. In this regard, it was emphasised that greenhouse gas reduction cannot succeed on an ad-hoc, project-by-project basis. There is a need to integrate a strategy for low carbon growth, one that puts transport, buildings, energy savings, renewable energy sources, green spaces and waste at the heart of Oman’s urban master plans.

Smart city thinking Today, Oman’s population is 3,949,000 up from 2,416,000 in 2004. In fact, the number of city dwellers world-wide is at an all-time-high. according to the World economic and Social Survey 2013 produced by the united nations Department for economic and Social aﬀairs, more than 6.25 billion people will be living in cities by 2050. Between 2000 and 2050, developing regions could add 3.2 billion new urban residents, a ﬁgure larger than the entire world’s population in 195019. If we do not smarten-up our urban infrastructure, daily life could slowly grind to a halt. Fortunately, there is much that can be done. Smart city thinking, whereby technology is used to ease urban living, is gaining popularity. experimental eco-cities, such as China’s Sino-Singapore Tianjin (SSTeC) project or Fujisawa in Japan, certainly provide valuable insights into the future of sustainable urban design. Fujisawa’s innovative funding model – the project is backed by a consortium of nine companies, led by electronics giant Panasonic, could inspire other collaborative schemes. 18

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Discussions highlighted three key principles as critical to ensuring success in taking advantage of Oman’s cities as vehicles for sustainable development: l density - it boosts creativity, entrepreneurial energy and jobs, while at the same time helps mitigate climate change by ensuring that residents are close to where they live and work l diversity - when embraced by a city, it can spur faster and smarter growth l sound land use planning and formalization - this means ensuring Oman’s cities are designed for eﬃcient land and energy use and able to maximize economic opportunities for all residents.

urban inspiration Cities that have embraced the sustainable development challenge and that Oman can draw inspiration from include: l new York City: expecting one million more residents by the year 2030, new York launched its PlanYC20 initiative in 2007. Since then, it has created or preserved more than 64,000 housing units, built new neighbourhoods with mass transit access, enacted ambitious energy efficiency laws for existing buildings and reduced the city’s greenhouse gas emissions 13% below 2005 levels. l Dhaka: The rapid expansion of Bangladesh’s capital highlighted the need for a sustainable approach to handling municipal solid waste.21 Since more than three-quarters of the city’s waste is organic, the government chose to recycle it into compost at a centralized plant employing 800 workers. now, 50,000 metric tonnes of compost is produced, lowering the burden on the city’s landfills and reducing municipal greenhouse gas emissions by 89,000 tonnes of CO2 every year. l Bogotá: In looking at reducing automobile traffic, the capital of Colombia expanded both its mass transit system and bicycling infrastructure. The city’s Transmilenio Bus rapid Transit system22 now carries almost 2 million passengers per day and almost 300 kilometres of bicycle lanes have been built, spurring an almost tenfold expansion of bicycle use. l Bilbao: This Basque city was historically a centre of heavy industry. But as this sector aged and declined, manufacturing jobs were lost. Bilbao chose to redevelop in a different Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

direction, and a 30-year plan set in 1991 has invested more than uS$885 million to clean and regenerate brownfields and industrial land in four key areas.23 The effort included a branch of the Guggenheim museum that established the city as a new cultural hub for europe. In order to create better planned, smarter, more ecologically resilient and liveable Omani cities we should consider: l developing a sustainability framework with a series of indicators and targets to measure progress l improving city planning and land use regimes including incentives for transit oriented developments l investing in behaviour change, education and training l engaging in more effective government, industry and community collaboration l increasing funding for public and active transport and clean distributed energy l ensuring rapid progress towards carbon neutral and water sensitive cities l finding ways to create a step change increase in energy and water efficiency l showcasing zero carbon developments l mandating more ambitious fuel consumption targets for cars.

session 4 Learning Creating an aligned, twenty-ﬁrst century education system that prepares Omani students, workers and citizens to triumph in the global skills race is central to Oman’s competitiveness over the next decade.24 as was highlighted in other OCF13 panels, today’s global economy is being driven by entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity and knowledge. It is a world that faces multiple business, scientiﬁc, technological, health and environmental challenges. However, it is 20

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the ingenuity, agility and skills of the Omani people that will raise the sultanate’s competitiveness. Our ability to compete as a nation, create jobs, expand our growing manufacturing base, logistics, tourism and ICT sectors, attract talent and investment as well as grow local businesses demands a robust and dynamic education system. We need to recognize that education is the bedrock of competitiveness - the engine, not simply an input, of the economy. and we have to act accordingly. every aspect of our education system – from kindergarten through primary, secondary, tertiary to adult education, on-the-job training and teacher training programs, must be aligned to equip Oman’s citizens with the twenty-ﬁrst century skills they need to compete.

Provide residents with opportunities to enjoy a high quality of life.

Oman’s future economic competitiveness and long-term success are directly tied to the quality and skills of its workforce. Historically, a location’s attraction has often been based on its ability to offer cheap land and labour. In a global economy, however, employers are looking for higher-skilled workers often with post-secondary education and specialized skills sets. education is life-enhancing. In fact, in the coming decades, successful nations will be those which are learning societies - where all are committed, through effective education and training, to lifelong learning. moreover, experience suggests that the long-term demand from Oman’s business community will be for higher levels of education and training for their present and future workforce. In this regard, the sultanate cannot afford to lag behind competitors in investing in the intellect and skills of its people. as the world becomes increasingly interdependent, enhancing human capital will become ever more critical. So, for Oman to be a successful nation in a competitive world, and to maintain a cohesive society and a rich culture, we must invest in education to develop our greatest resource, our people. Indeed, all Omanis, not just the elite, need twenty-first century skills that will increase their marketability, employability and readiness for citizenship. ed Glaeser, the Fred and eleanor Glimp Professor of economics at Harvard: “Human capital, far more than physical infrastructure, Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

explains which cities succeed. The share of the population with a college degree is used to estimate the skill level of a place, and no other measure does better in explaining recent urban prosperity. as the share of the population with college degrees increases by 10%, per capita gross metropolitan product rises by 22%.”25 Glaeser clearly indicates where Oman should be investing and research demonstrates a direct correlation between thriving locations and post-secondary education. It is clear that increased attainment delivers stronger local economies, greater individual earning power and better quality of life. Therefore, it is suggested we consider making improvements in the following areas:

right answer. Omani employers expect staﬀ at all levels to identify problems, think through solutions and alternatives, and explore new options if their approaches are not successful. Often, this work involves groups of people with diﬀerent knowledge and skills who, collectively, add value to their organizations.

Creative and entrepreneurial thinking many of the fastest-growing jobs and emerging industries rely on workers’ creative capacity, the ability to think unconventionally and imagine new scenarios. Likewise, jobs can be created with an entrepreneurial mind-set, the ability to recognize and act on opportunities and the willingness to embrace risk and responsibility must be encouraged in schools.

Great teachers Oman should review its recruitment, preparation, professional development, compensation and evaluation practices to reﬂect best practices of the highest-performing countries. research clearly indicates that the greatest determinant of students’ academic achievement is teacher quality.26 It is absolutely essential to provide every Omani child access to highly trained, eﬀective and motivated teaching personnel.

Twenty-ﬁrst century skills We need to focus more on teaching and measuring advanced, twenty-ﬁrst century skills that are central to Oman’s competitiveness in the global economy. In addition to the assessment of reading, mathematics and science, Oman should assess other essential skills that are in demand today, for example, complex problem solving, active listening, judgement and decision making, critical thinking, numeracy and IT literacy.

Critical thinking Thinking critically - making judgments about the information that confronts us every day on the Web, in the media, at home and in the workplace. Critical thinking empowers people to assess the credibility, accuracy and value of information, analyse and evaluate information, make reasoned decisions and take purposeful action.

Problem solving The challenges facing today’s workforce do not typically have a single 22

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education is the bedrock of competitiveness therefore every aspect must equip Oman’s citizens with 21st century skills that lead to competitiveness.

STem International competition requires Oman to promote and support a vibrant science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STem) community – one that produces engineers, mathematicians, scientists, technologists and researchers, the human talent required to take Oman forward in the twenty-ﬁrst century. To accomplish this, students must have access to top-quality STem education that is engaging and motivating, leads to higher order thinking skills and prepares them for civic engagement on STem issues.

Communication skills Communicating and collaborating with colleagues across cultural, geographic and language boundaries is a necessity in today’s diverse and multinational communities. It is not only top management who represent companies anymore. all employees must be skilled at interacting competently and today, more frequently across borders.

Internships The Brooking’s Center on Children and Families 2012 policy brief “Should everyone Go to College?”27 demonstrates the importance of post-secondary training and argues that technical and vocational certiﬁcation programs, apprenticeships and internship programs not only have merit but can also help young adults in selecting the correct career path. Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

Internships can help students build early professional experience and discover what they do and do not want to do career-wise. Furthermore, they can help students understand the applications of academic learning in the real world and build a network of professionals in fields that interest them. The most commonly identified skills young people learn on an internship include: time management, workplace interaction, project management, equipment operation, collecting and organizing information, leadership, computer technology, sales and customer service, teaching and instruction. While the benefits of an internship to the student are obvious, they can often be seen as tedious for businesses. However, the uS-based national association of Colleges and employers (naCe) 2009 experiential education Survey28 shows that companies of all sizes can benefit from a meaningful and well-structured internship program. For example, the survey reveals that 25.3% of employers’ full-time, entry-level college hires came from their internship programs and 67.7% of interns are offered full-time positions. moreover, the naCe survey also showed that 40% of employers reported a higher fiveyear retention rate among employees hired via their internship programs, suggesting that internships boost employee-retention rates. Given results of the naCe survey, it is evident that internship programs offer Omani businesses an opportunity to find future employees. It also offers them a window in which to test-drive talent to see whether they fit within the company environment, while simultaneously offering an opportunity to train the student-intern so that they make fewer mistakes if offered a full-time post.

Internships l build early professional

experience and network l competitiveness and success

depend on Omani youth l a nationwide internship program

Creating a workforce pipeline that bridges the school/college workplace gap is not only necessary for young people, but for Oman’s future competitive success. In 2013, Ithraa launched riyada,29 a summer internship program for muscat Youth Summit alumni. It is recommended that communities across Oman, in partnership with local businesses and the ministries of education and Higher education, follow the riyada example, and create further internship programs. 24

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l have a young talented

workforce by 2020.

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Oman’s future competitive success depends on its youth. In this regard, a nationwide internship program would not only change the course of students’ lives but also change the sultanate. It would build relationships between employers, schools, colleges, business and government and aspiring students. By 2020, we should have a young workforce that is not only talented and driven, but also highly motivated to give back to the nation that chose to invest in them.

management systems to solve current and future challenges and create exciting new services. moreover, they will connect citizens to government and encourage more direct participation, interaction and collaboration. They will also provide solutions that are economically and environmentally sustainable. This is the potential future for every city, town and village in Oman.

master plans

session 5 Smart communities The term ‘smart community’ is ambiguous at best. While some choose a narrow definition - communities that use information communication technology (ICT) to deliver services to citizens - the OCF13 Smart Communities panel discussed a broader definition: a smart community is one that uses ICT to be more intelligent and efficient in its use of resources that results in improved service delivery to residents, offers a better quality of life and helps reduce the community’s carbon footprint.

Citizens expect to have the community at their ﬁngertips – to book a restaurant table, apply for a driving license, a university place, or even tweet public ﬁgures.

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

But there is more to smart communities than simply deploying technology. It is about preparing communities to meet the challenges of a global economy. In fact, more than ever, the traditional bricksand-mortar drivers of economic growth are giving way to an economy based on innovation and creativity that is driven by today’s new technology. Therefore, Oman’s competitive edge will be based on its ability to create and absorb skills and innovation that is being powered by ICT.

Bright future according to aBI research there are currently 102 smart city projects running worldwide. Twenty-one initiatives are being run in asiaPaciﬁc, 38 in europe and 45 in north america.30 and spending on smart city technologies is expected to reach uS$39.5 billion by 2016. It is these communities that will use the power of communication networks, highly distributed wireless sensor technology and intelligent

In an eﬀort to boost competitiveness, cities around the world are developing master ICT plans. The Delhi mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Company (DmIC)31 is a good example; it is developing an ICT master plan for two pilot cities in a uS$90 billion ﬂagship public sector infrastructure project. The entire scope of the DmIC will consist of 24 cities in total, spanning six Indian states. The DmIC’s key focus is to create a global manufacturing and trading hub through smart and socially inclusive cities that take advantage of world-class digital infrastructure. many suggest that a city without an ICT master plan is simply not relevant anymore.

Smart citizens Given the economic realties of today’s world, are communities in the financial position to sensor enable every street corner, traffic light and ambulance service? even if monies were available to install the required sensor hardware, the on-going maintenance would be prohibitively expensive. moreover, would funding be available for the IT infrastructure required to support the volume of information being generated? Smart communities will be driven by citizens who have found new ways to craft, interlink and make sense of data. These are citizens who want to collaborate with government, business and their community in order to create devices and applications that solve specific local problems – from pollution levels, repairing potholes to funding a community kindergarten. Smart communities will be places that foster creativity, where citizens generate ideas, services and solutions. and it is apparent that the most interesting and productive use of today’s technology is in in the hands of Oman’s citizens, via mobile phones and social media. Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

Growing urban populations stress city infrastructure and resources. Cities now experience traffic congestion as they cannot build physical infrastructure to keep pace with rising demand and usage. This, in time, will apply not only to roads but also to schools, hospitals and other urban resources. With finite resources and limited budgets, is it not imperative that Oman build smarter, using technology to more efficiently manage and use existing infrastructure as well as plan for future growth?

Smart communities The expectations of citizens for interacting with, and accessing, public services are changing. millennials32, for example, expect to have the community at their ﬁnger tips - to buy cinema tickets, book a restaurant table, apply for a driver’s license or even a university place online or tweet government and public ﬁgures. They want consistent, personal service via their smart device. This trend challenges policy-makers to create new channels for service delivery.

Find new ways to collaborate with government, business and their communities in order to create devices and applications that solve speciﬁc local problems.

Digital data is expected to double every two years until 2020 and we have recently witnessed social media being adopted and adapted to empower the smart citizen.33 Indeed, collaboration on the web is an area of exponential growth and crowdsourcing, tapping into the collective intelligence of the public at large to complete businessrelated tasks that an organization would normally either perform itself or outsource to a third-party provider, is one of the standouts for growth in today’s evolving collaborative economy34. Organizations in both the public and private sector are beginning to realize their most powerful asset is their people. Citizens and employees have ideas they want to share. They are often on the front line with customers, living and breathing the day-to-day processes and developing the products or services that power the organization they work for. People have suggestions ranging from incremental improvements to ground-breaking, disruptive innovations and Government and the business community are recognizing that without ﬁnding an eﬀective way to leverage the power of the citizens’ collective voice, they will constantly be chasing innovation rather than enabling innovation by engaging and collaborating. If crowdsourcing has helped business then can it not help government

Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

develop better policies? virtually any topic can be crowdsourced – this oﬀers government the opportunity to post an issue in the form of a challenge and ask citizens for the submission of solutions.35 For example, new York City’s nYC SimpliCity36 asks city employees to help the city be more innovative and help save costs during major budget crunches. arizona’s imesa program37 is a response to the global economic downturn and is designed to collect citizens’ ideas on how to save money. maryland’s Idea Factory also solicits ideas from citizens designed to stimulate new ideas and innovation for Harford County.38 The focus is on innovation, creativity and the generation of new ideas. In many cases this type of open innovation crowdsourcing not only allows citizens to submit their ideas, but also to provide additional information on how their idea can be executed. moreover, participants can comment on other submitted ideas. Government can then select the best solution or set of solutions and compensate the winners. a challenge opens the conversation and allows the ‘crowd’ to come up with the solution, often without rigid requirements. a further practical example of crowdsourcing and community-led e-citizen engagement is egg39 - a network that alerts people to air pollution. researchers estimate that two million people die each year as a result of air pollution and as cities become more crowded, the problem is likely to get worse. egg compiles data about air quality by selling cheap sensors which people place outside their homes and collect readings of green gases, nitrogen oxide (nO2) and carbon monoxide (CO). The data is sent to the Internet where it is integrated on a map to show pollution levels around the world. Getting citizens to become involved in crowdsourcing initiatives that improve Oman’s cities – making them more liveable – should be encouraged. In this regard, the Centre for advanced Spatial analysis at university College, London has created a city dashboard as part of plans to make London smarter. The dashboard collates data such as pollution, weather and river levels. However, it also looks at what is trending on Twitter and how happy the city is. an Oman Competitiveness Forum 2013

iPad version of the dashboard hangs in the oﬃce of the mayor of London, Boris Johnson.40 all of these projects are excellent examples of bottom-up digital engagement that are helping increase levels of local and national competitiveness. However, the challenge facing many cities is how to improve public services by empowering smart citizens who are able to use and co-produce innovative Internet-enabled services? Oman is in a strong position to learn from the experiences developed by a wide range of existing user-driven, open innovation initiatives in european and uS cities – for example, amsterdam, edinburgh, manchester, Gent, Cologne, Bologna, Oulu, new York City and Chicago - and apply those experiences and engage with Omani residents to actively co-produce public services. In this regard, we should be asking the following questions:41 l l l l l

l l l l l l

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What do people think of the ‘smart community’ concept and what should our ambitions be? How should work on developing the ‘smart community best be co-ordinated and managed? What are the main drivers supporting this work and what are the main challenges? What are the main assets and resources to be used? What are the best examples of innovation, locally and globally, which could be used to benchmark by and where is innovation happening and how accessible and replicable is it? How should we best judge ‘smart community’ success and failure? How can local benefit be maximized and sustained? What specific initiatives are there to create new assets and infrastructures to support innovation? Where are the local benefits from innovation and what should future priorities be for local benefit? What are the drivers and gaps or bottlenecks in relation to enabling Oman’s cities to become smart communities? What specific assets, in terms of human, technological and infrastructures, are needed to support this work in Oman’s cities, including what assets are already there and what needs to be developed? How can such assets be made more accessible and

l l

networked to support greater collaboration? What kind of test-bed facilities and applications are needed to trial new services? How can Oman’s residents best be involved in developing these new services and how can that engagement best be sustained?

and what would life be like if Oman’s cities could talk? If they could give live updates on traﬃc patterns, weather conditions, parking spaces, water, power and light? Imagine how that kind of smart community information could improve the economic and environmental health of Oman’s communities, residents, businesses and visitors. Imagine how it could improve working conditions and productivity for the people who manage and maintain Oman’s cities. Imagine its impact on Oman’s competitiveness.

Smart communities are those that use ICT to be more intelligent, resulting in eﬃcient use of resources, improved services which oﬀer a better quality of life.

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appendix 1 http://www.weforum.org/pdf/Global_Competitiveness_reports/Proﬁles/Oman.pdf

15 http://rogerlmartin.com/lets-read/ﬁxing-the-game

http://www.freetheworld.com/arab_release.html

29 http://www.muscatdaily.com/archive/Oman/PaIPeD-honours-15-riyada-programme-participants-2lo0

16 https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/Shop-Small 2 www.brookings.edu/~/...metro.../0118_global_metro_monitor.pdf

30 https://www.abiresearch.com/press/smart-city-technologies-will-grow-ﬁvefold17 Times of Oman, Saturday 23 October 2010, ‘Globalization Holds Key to the Future’

to-exce

18 http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/cambridge-unveils-plans-to-become-retro-

31 http://www.dmicdc.com

3 Porter, m. (2001). regions and the new economics of Competition. In Scott, a. (2001)

ﬁt-city 4 Gulf marketing review, november 2008, pg. 80 – 86. ‘Brand Oman: Showcasing

32 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/millennials

the Sultanate’

19 http://www.un.org/news/Press/docs/2013/dev3008.doc.htm

5 Jacobs, J. (1992). OeCD - metropolitan Cities review

20 http://www.nyc.gov/html/planyc2030/html/theplan/the-plan.shtml

universe-of.htm

6 eu Gives Top Priority to Helping Smes Create Jobs. european Commission memO,

21 http://www.dncc.gov.bd/departments-with-function/mayor-other/solid-waste.html

34 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ya6zndBObHY

22 http://www.trb.org/PublicTransportation/Blurbs/157464.aspx

35 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0-utng3ots

23 http://www.bm30.es/homeage9_uk.html

36 http://publicpolicylab.org/2011/03/nyc-simplicity

8 Oman’s largest business incubator program managed by the Public establishment

24 Global competitiveness in the 21st century: are our schools up to the challenge of

37 http://www.mesaaz.gov/imesa

for Industrial estates and based on Knowledge Oasis muscat.

preparing students for a rapidly changing world? Chrisanne L. Gayl, nSBa Policy

33 http://www.emc.com/leadership/digital-universe/iview/executive-summary-a-

Brussels, 25 June 2013

7 enriching the ecosystem: Forging the missing Links Between Innovation, enterprises & Jobs

research Brief

38 http://www.harfordcountymd.gov/CountyLine/Index.cfm?ID=22

25 ed Glaeser, Triumph of the City: How Our Greatest Invention makes us richer,

39 http://airqualityegg.com

9 http://issuu.com/trendsmagazine/docs/gmr_sept_2011 pgs. 38 - 40

10 economic Gardening - Is it right for Your Community? Christina reddin, Colorado

Smarter, Greener, Healthier, and Happier, 2011

mesa university, 2013

40 https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/ﬁles/smart_london_plan.pdf 26 The Importance of Teacher Quality as a Key Determinant of Students’ experiences

11 Birch, David L., Job Creation in america: How our smallest companies put the

and Outcomes of Schooling , Kenneth J. rowe, PhD - Principal research Fellow,

most people to work (The Free Press, 1987)

australian Council for educational research http://www.utahpta.org/ﬁles/docs/the_importance_of_teacher_quality.pdf

12 edward Lowe Foundation - Helping Communities Help their entrepreneurs 27 http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/up-front/posts/2013/05/09-college-degree13 Christian Gibbons, Director of Business/Industry aﬀairs, City of Littleton, Colorado

value-investment-return-sawhill-owen#

www.littletongov.org/bia 28 http://www.naceweb.org/intern-co-op-survey/ 14 www.growﬂ.com

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41 http://ec.europa.eu/eip/smartcities/ﬁles/sip_ﬁnal_en.pdf