The Omani Government defines In Country Value (ICV) as - the total spend retained in-country that benefits business development, contribute to human capability development and stimulate productivity in the Omani economy. In summary this means products that are made and services provided by skilled Omanis.

What are the key objectives of ICV in Oman?

1. Increasing Omanisation and developing the skills of the national workforce.
2. Increasing in-country spend on local goods and services

The program, known as the ICV Blueprint Strategy, was introduced in late 2013 aiming at achieving optimal value from the country’s petroleum resources. ICV policies are one of the means by which policy makers can ensure that the country gains additional benefits to the economy beyond the direct contribution of selling the extraction of exhaustive resources like Oil and Gas. The objective of implementing such policies is also to build a workforce that is trained to international standards and to build effective and resilient domestic supply chains.

What are ICV elements?

In Oman ICV is heavily promoted in the oil and gas industry and encompasses a set of 7 elements which are factored into the tender evaluation criteria of which bidders are evaluated upon accordingly. The same ICV elements play a key role in evaluation criteria along side quality and commerciality. The ICV elements are:

1. Investments in Fixed Assets
2. Omanisation in the Work Force
3. Training of Omanis
4. Local Sourcing of Goods
5. Local Sourcing of Subcontracted Services
6. Development of National Suppliers
7. Development of National Training, Education and R&D Institutions

Why is ICV beneficial?

Companies engaging in ICV and obtaining a high ICV score are viewed as a responsible partner and benefit from special status. Furthermore, establishing local manufacturing capabilities can help operators shorten the lead times for sourcing of goods and minimize the working capital and inventory required.

A new electronic system called Ta’ziz has been introduced earlier this year by the Omani Authority for Partnership for Development to offer Omani companies a chance to participate in multinational projects and contribute to the In-Country Value (ICV). It will allow Omani SMEs to register online to work along with multinational projects.

PRO Partner Group can assist you to set up your company in Oman, we can act as the secure Local Partner and provide professional PRO Services to support you and your staff. For more information on Omanisation and In-Country Value in Oman please contact Natalia on +971 (0)56 689 7293 or +971 (0)4 456 1761, email us at natalia@propartnergroup.com.