Sultan Haitham Issues 16 Royal Decrees Restructuring Government, Establishing Key Authorities and Appointments
Muscat, The Gulf Observer: His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik on Monday issued 16 Royal decrees instituting major structural and administrative changes across Oman’s government, establishing new authorities, redefining ministries, and announcing key appointments.
The decrees include the establishment of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs (Royal Decree No. 7/2026) and the Oman Global Financial Centre (Royal Decree No. 8/2026), both aimed at enhancing economic governance and investment facilitation. The Higher Committee for Conferences was abolished (Royal Decree No. 9/2026).
Several decrees redefined ministries and authorities:
- The Secretariat General of the Council of Ministers (Royal Decree No. 10/2026) and its organizational structure were endorsed.
- The Research and Innovation Authority was established (Royal Decree No. 11/2026), consolidating research and innovation functions previously under the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation.
- The Oman Authority for Quality Assurance of Education was renamed and restructured (Royal Decree No. 12/2026).
- The Ministry of Education was formed by merging the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (Royal Decree No. 14/2026).
- The Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Social Development, and other key ministries had their specializations and organizational structures updated (Royal Decrees No. 13, 15/2026).
- Amendments were made to the Oman Investment Authority system (Royal Decrees No. 16, 22/2026).
Royal Decree No. 17/2026 restructured the Council of Ministers, naming His Majesty as Chair and appointing key officials, including deputy prime ministers, ministers, and governors across strategic portfolios.
Additional decrees (Nos. 18–21/2026) conducted appointments to senior positions and advisory roles across government authorities, ministries, municipalities, and the Diwan of Royal Court, including heads of the Research and Innovation Authority, Oman Authority for Quality Assurance of Education, and Muscat Municipality.
These decrees, published in the Official Gazette, come into force from their date of issuance, reflecting His Majesty’s vision to strengthen governance, enhance economic and social development, and support Oman’s long-term strategic objectives under the Oman Vision 2040 framework.
