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People
Cultural Demography
Oman's population numbers close to three million people, and the majority live in the capital city of Muscat and on the Batinah coastal plain northwest of the capital. The southern region of Dhofar is home to around 200,000, and about 30,000 live in the remote Musandam peninsula on the Strait of Hormuz. At least 550,000 expatriates live in Oman, most of whom are guest workers from South Asia, Egypt, Jordan and the Philippines.
The people of Oman tend to be predominantly Arabs, although there is a significant South Asian population as well, originating from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as well. There are also small numbers of Africans and Europeans.
The predominant religion practiced is Ibadhi Islam, although the Sunni and Shi'a sects of Islam are also represented. Hinduism is the most significant minority religion practiced in Oman, although there is a Christian minority.
Arabic is the official language, while English, Baluchi, Urdu and other Indian dialects and languages are also spoken.
Human Development
Since 1970, the government has given especially high priority to education to develop a domestic work force, which the government considers a vital factor in the country's economic and social progress. In 1986, Oman's first university, Sultan Qaboos University, opened. Other post-secondary institutions include a technical college, banking institute, teachers training college and health sciences institute. As many as 200 scholarships are awarded each year for study abroad. The functional literacy rate is 81.4 percent -- 86.8 percent for males, and 73.5 percent for females.
In terms of health and welfare, the infant mortality rate of Oman is around 17.45 deaths per 1,000 live births. Life expectancy at birth for the total population is 73.91 years -- 71.64 years for males, and 76.29 years for females. The population is growing at a rate of 3.38 percent, according to recent estimates. The fertility rate is very high at 5.94 children per woman.
About hree percent of GDP in this country is spent on health expenditures; about 3.9 percent of GDP in this country is spent on education. Access to water and sanitation in this country is regarded to be good, with notable obstacles certain rural areas.
A notable measure of human development is the Human Development Index (HDI), which is formulated by the United Nations Development Program. The HDI is a composite of several indicators, which measure a country's achievements in three main arenas of human development: longevity, knowledge and education, as well as economic standard of living. The HDI in a recent ranking placed Oman in the high human development category, at 58th place. However, the latest HDI rankings omitted Oman. Although the concept of human development is complicated and cannot be properly captured by values and indices, the HDI, which is calculated and updated annually, offers a wide-ranging assessment of human development in certain countries, not based solely upon traditional economic and financial indicators.
Written by Dr. Denise Youngblood Coleman, Editor in Chief, www.countrywatch.com. See Bibliography for list of general research sources.
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