Strategic Vision
Responsible state agencies with comprehensive governance, effective oversight, swift justice system, and efficient performance; active and ever-renewing media, aided by an empowered civil society.
Priorities under this pillar:
- Legislative, Judicial and Oversight System
- Governance of State’s Administrative Bodies, Resources and Projects
Overview
The Governance and Institutional Performance pillar is Vision 2040’s recognition that without capable, accountable, and transparent public institutions, every other pillar will underperform. Economic diversification requires regulatory predictability. Labour market reform requires effective labour law enforcement. Environmental targets require competent regulators. All of this requires governance.
Priority 11: Legislative, Judicial and Oversight System
This priority targets what might be called the rule-of-law infrastructure: the quality of laws, the independence and efficiency of courts, and the robustness of oversight and accountability mechanisms.
Strategic Direction: “A Leading Legislative and Judicial System Based on Fairness, Efficiency and Transparency”
2025 progress:
- Investment and Commercial Court established (Royal Decree 35/2025) — a significant reform targeting the commercial dispute resolution environment that investors cite as a concern
- Corruption Perceptions Index improved 20 places to rank 50th globally in 2024 — one of the largest single-year improvements among Arab states
- State Audit Institution strengthened
- Public Prosecution modernised
The Corruption Milestone: Oman’s 20-place improvement in the Transparency International CPI is the standout governance achievement of the 2024/2025 period. Moving from approximately rank 70 to rank 50 reflects meaningful progress in institutional integrity. The Vision 2040 2040 target is top 30 countries — achievable if momentum is sustained.
Priority 12: Governance of State’s Administrative Bodies, Resources and Projects
This priority covers the day-to-day effectiveness of the civil service, public procurement, government performance management, and digital transformation.
Strategic Direction: “Effective, Transparent and Accountable Governance of All State Entities”
2025 progress highlights:
- 2,680 government procedures simplified and digitised by 2024, toward 2,869 target by 2025
- Tajawob National Platform for Suggestions, Complaints and Reports launched
- Fourth Industrial Revolution Centre (C4IR Oman) established — 22nd globally, 6th in Middle East
- Oman’s first satellite officially registered with the United Nations
- Digital government transformation proceeding systematically across ministries
The Structural Governance Challenge
Oman’s governance challenge is not primarily one of corruption — it remains relatively clean by regional standards. The deeper challenge is bureaucratic efficiency and the pace of regulatory reform.
Investors consistently report that while Oman’s investment policies are increasingly attractive on paper, execution and administrative timelines can be slow. The simplification of 2,680 government procedures is meaningful progress, but the private sector requires not just digital procedures but fast, predictable, and consistent regulatory decisions.
The Investment and Commercial Court is a direct response to this concern — providing a dedicated forum for commercial disputes with judges trained in business law.
Government Effectiveness Target
The government effectiveness indicator from the World Governance Indicators (WGI) is targeted to exceed 1.8 (top 10 countries) by 2040, compared to a baseline of approximately 0.8. Reaching this level would place Oman alongside Singapore and the Nordic states — an extremely ambitious target that requires sustained institutional reform across the entire civil service.
Current estimate: approximately 0.95 (2022), suggesting the trajectory is positive but the distance to the 2040 target remains substantial.