Bandar Seri Begawan - Oman and Brunei have much in common, which is one of the reasons why the relationship between the two countries is so strong, the Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to Brunei Darussalam said at the 39th Oman National Day celebrations, held at The Empire Hotel and Country Club last night.

Ambassador Sayyid Fakhri Mohammed Said Al-Said said to The Brunei Times that Brunei's eco-culture was very strong, with its focus on eeotourism, fishing and farming, and that was one thing that Oman wanted to learn from Brunei.

Likewise, Brunei had shown interest in learning about the administration of the government in Oman as well as aluminium smelting and other technologies in Oman, he added.

The key for both countries, said the ambassador, was the diversification from oil and natural gases to other industries that can contribute to Gross Domestic Product.

One important factor he noted was that both countries did not want to open up development too quickly, so that it does not become a burden for the people. "We want prosperity, but the people must be able to enjoy the fruits of our success." he said.

Providing an update on the US$100 million ($142 million) investment fund being set up between Oman and Brunei, he said that a company named Omani Brunei Investment

Holding Co had been set up and that office space had been allocated for the headquarters in Muscat.

He added that the investment fund could be increased for a project of great benefit to both countries.

A Memorandum of Understanding (Mal) to establish the fund was signed between Brunei and Oman in April this year.

The fund aims to facilitate investments in infrastructure, tourism, health, telecommunications, utilities and other sectors in Brunei, Oman and neighbouring markets.

Brunei and Oman have entered into numerous cooperative agreements since modern diplomatic relations were formalised in March 1984.

Among them are the Cooperation in Islamic Affairs in 1996, the Agreement on Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Foreign Investment in 1998, visa exemption agreement for stays not longer than 30 days in 2001, an MoU to increase education ties in 2007 and the Agreement on the Avoidance of Double Taxation in 2008.

In February this year, Brunei and Oman signed an MoU to improve cooperation in healthcare.-- Courtesy of The Brunei Times

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Write comment

Name

Email

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment