The current ban, which is expected to expire at the end of January 2019, has halted the hiring of expats to jobs across 87 sectors These steps taken by the government are part of the Omanization drive to recruit more of its citizens in private companies DUBAI: Oman’s Ministry of Manpower is considering extending the expatriate visa ban that was implemented early this year, local daily Times of Oman reported. The current ban, which is expected to expire at the end of January 2019, has halted the hiring of expats to jobs across 87 sectors which include information systems, accounting and finance, sales and marketing, administration, human resources and insurance. “The decision to regulate the labour market, provide job opportunities for job seekers in these disciplines, reduce the recruitment of labour force in the country, and the ban for a period of six months can be renewed based on the results of the study and the success in providing job opportunities in these disciplines,” Salim bin Nasser Al Hadhrami, Director General of Planning and Development at the Manpower Ministry told the daily. Earlier this week, the Ministry of Manpower announced that companies will have to secure the ministry’s go ahead before they can hire expats. A new traffic light-themed online system is currently being rolled out in Oman, in which companies’ Omanization quotas are being monitored. Under this new system, companies that meet Omanization standards set by the government will receive a green signal online, allowing them to proceed with hiring expat employees. These steps taken by the government are part of the Omanization drive to recruit more of its citizens in private companies, a similar push is underway across the GCC where countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have also been trying to increase the number of nationals in private sector employment.