Muscat – H H Sayyid Theyazin bin Haitham al Said, Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth, has assured his ministry’s bigger engagement with youth of the country, who constitute 19.4% of the total population in Oman.

The focus of the Minister is also on elevating the sports sector to meet the aspirations of today’s youth.

H H Sayyid Theyazin made clear about his position on this sector while speaking at the ‘Culture, Sports, Youth, Media and National Identity’ panel discussion at the second edition of Together We Progress on Monday.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth (MCSY), he added, will re-evaluate the sports sector in Oman, with a specialised firm taking a supervisory role in the process.

“The company will take measures to upgrade the performance of sports federations and clubs in line with public aspirations.”

H H Sayyid Theyazin reviewed the sports city project to be established in the wilayat of Musanaa as per the Royal Directives.

A prestigious international company has been recruited to undertake the project, with the overall plan covering maintenance of the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher, he informed.

“The ministry is also considering privatisation of clubs, with plans to start with four clubs to be made affiliated to major companies. We will begin applying some standards to improve the performance of these clubs, with emphasis on a specific activity and look out for the desired results, before proceeding with the rest,” H H Sayyid Theyazin added.

During the session, the minister affirmed that good citizenship takes centre stage in national thinking and that the Sultanate of Oman adheres to its customs, history, culture and heritage.

“We were and are still open to the world and we continue to extend a helping hand and espouse friendship and peace in pursuit of what serves the interests of the Sultanate of Oman,” H H Sayyid Theyazin said.

He pointed out that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth has come a long way in consolidating Omani identity, getting impetus from the country’s traditions and ancient history. He explained that, within the context of attention accorded to youth, an Omani encyclopedia will be launched in the near future to enlighten emerging generations.

During a dialogue session on ‘Media and the National Identity’, H E Dr Abdullah Nasser al Harrasi, Minister of Information, announced the start of two strategic projects on ‘soft power’ that will be informed by culture, sports, media, identity and the civilisation of the Sultanate of Oman.

The aim is to raise the status the country, highlight its history and transfer it to future generations, said H E Harrasi, adding that the Ministry of Information will launch three documentary films about Oman and its historical presence on Sunday.

The films were produced in cooperation with a global company specialised in cultural documentation.

The ministry will also launch a book on Oman, he informed.

The minister laid emphasis on the importance of developing various local media institutions to keep pace with the progress taking place in modern media, including artificial intelligence.

“There is a great opportunity to invest in the media field, and the Ministry is according great attention to children and their upbringing,” said H E Dr Harrasi.

He noted that examples of this attention include the establishment of Ayn Platform, Children’s Supplement in Oman Arabic Daily newspaper and Children’s Channel project, which is now completed and ready to be launched as soon as financial resources become available.