As Oman sees a significant rise in e-commerce business, the governments plans to Omanise the online delivery profession as a huge demand for delivery jobs in the country rises. 

H E Dr Ahmed al Futaisi, Minister of Transport, said on Thursday that there are plans to allow only Omanis to work in the delivery services. “The Ministry of Transport is coordinating with the Ministry of Manpower on this issue. Once a decision is passed, non-Omanis or expatriates will not be allowed to deliver restaurant and online orders,” he said. 

In a statement, the Ministry of Transport said that creating a positive environment for Omanis in the ‘delivery business’ comes in the light of the growth of e-commerce and the changing consumer behaviour in Oman, especially in the current circumstances. 

‘With the COVID-19 pandemic, the delivery business has gained unprecedented attraction by Omani youth due to its association with e-commerce and the use of modern technologies in tracking, automatic transaction, customer satisfaction and gaining skills,’ the statement said. 

‘There are great difficulties faced by the Omani youth in competing with the expatriates in this market who publicly practise in the field even though these works are already Omanised,’ it added. 

According to the ministry, a few electronic platforms have a daily average of 15,000 delivery requests and the delivery fees goes mostly to expatriates. The ministry added that this hidden trade and use of illegal and unauthorised workers who are satisfied with very modest amounts of money, need to be looked at. 

‘There are a few Omani platforms, who deliver an average 27-33 requests per day and generate a monthly income exceeding RO980. Their income can be increased by generating more requests. This profession can also be practised as part time work, the ministry stated.  

Economists expect that this business will witness significant growth during the next ten years in the light of the growth of e-commerce that the world is witnessing. ‘The ministry is working with its partners in the logistics sector to create an integrated national platform to organise and register the national workforce in the field of transport and delivery services. 

This will be integrated with the other platforms in order to ensure the application of the highest professional standards in addition to their training in this field. Requirements will also be imposed on electronic platforms which provide delivery services, so that they deal only with the Omani delivery representatives who will be licensed, the ministry stated.