B
P Oman is contributing to the
social and economic develop-
ment of Oman and Omani peo-
ple through various initiatives
which include support for education,
vocational training, skills for employ-
ment, capacity building for individuals
and the promotion of income gener-
ating activities. The company is also
involved in efforts to help and encour-
age the local community. Moreover, in-
vestment in human resources, training
and development of the communities is
a key priority.BP will consider how to make
community investment viable and
self-sufficient in terms of long-term
financing, skills and resources.
Plans may include ‘train the trainer’
initiatives, business training, income-
generating activities and long-term
shared funding mechanisms agreed
to by the community, the government,
NGOs, and other donors.EBDA is BP’s capacity building
programme designed for early stage
start-ups. The programme is designed
to take the participating teams in
multiple stages of skills developments.
The programme is co-created with
professional partners and subject
matter experts in relevant areas of
expertise. Participating teams are
expected to launch a product/company
utilising micro-funding opportunities
provided at the end of the programme.
It’s a four-month programme
targeted towards early start-ups. Theprogramme will equip participants
with the necessary skills to launch their
respective companies or products.Khazzan for SME Development Project
consists of evaluating the performance
of 20 local SMEs, identifying areas for
improvement and providing them with a
detailed report of how they can upgrade
their operations and make their business
more sustainable while following the
best practices. Based on the development
areas identified, Sharakah will suggest
actions for improvement. These actions
might include rebranding the business,
executing a marketing campaign, getting
a financial system or implementing
a quality system. Besides the funding
of the project, BP also allocate a grant
for each of these businesses to be used
for improvement. The amount will be
disbursed to third party organisationsEducation, enterprise development and energy
sustainability are at the core of BP Oman’s social
investment programme strategy
and suppliers who will provide the
services to the selected candidates.Mulihamat programme focusses on
building capacity for Omani women
entrepreneurs, enabling them to
operate efficiently and professionally.
Through capacity building, it will
assist Omani women on enhancing
management skills, good governance
and leadership that will give them
better professional standing in
achieving their goals and enabling them
to actively participate in the creation
of ecosystem. Moreover, the capability
to engage women further in their
programmes that will result in either
being self-employed or providing job
opportunities for the Omani women.Impactful
As with any social investment project
the impact of a programme takes time
to witness results. BP is currently in
process of evaluating projects that it has
funded over the past few years to obtain
further analysis. What is apparent is
that BP has played a role in developing
the capability of its partners, such as
Youth Vision. Other initiatives include
Innotech and Nafath Renewable Energy,
who were beneficiaries of Khazzan
for SME Development Progammes.
They are now BP partners delivering
programmes in energy sustainability.The programmes have helped to build
visibility to investors and potential
sponsors. BP Oman funded the training
and development of eight job seekers
who are currently working with Oman
Sail as trainers delivering leadership
programmes to different corporate
entities.BP has joined hands with the country’s
National Training Fund (NTF) to help
build the next generation of future-
ready financial talent that Oman’s
changing economy will need.The
company has trained 60 operators
and 20 supervisors to work in water
desalination plants as part of the
Middle East Desalination Research
Centre (MEDRC)’s vocational training
programme, Tahlya.Yousuf al Ojaili
President, BP Oman