Sultanate of Oman Surges 39 Places in 2024 Economic Freedom Index

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Muscat, The Gulf Observer: Sultanate of Oman has surged 39 places in the 2024 Economic Freedom Index, as reported by the Heritage Foundation, elevating its global rank to 56th compared to 95th in the previous year.

The Economic Freedom Index evaluates 184 economies, utilizing 12 sub-indices across four pillars: the rule of law, size of government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets. This index serves as a comprehensive measure of economic freedom and highlights the positive correlation between economic freedom and various social and economic objectives. These encompass healthier societies, environmental sustainability, increased per capita wealth, human development, democracy, and poverty eradication.

Oman’s impressive advancement is underscored by its improved score of 62.9 out of 100, elevating its economic classification from “mostly not free” to “somewhat free.” This surpasses the global and regional averages, with the classification ranging across five groups, where a higher score signifies a freer economy.

The Sultanate excelled notably in the financial health index, experiencing a substantial leap from 12.1 in 2023 to an impressive 73.8 out of 100 in 2024. Key factors contributing to this progress include a reduction in the proportion of public debt to gross domestic product and the achievement of a surplus in the public financial budget.

Oman’s stellar performance extends to other key indicators, particularly the tax burden index, where it secured a remarkable score of 97.6 out of 100. This index reflects marginal tax rates on personal and corporate income, as well as the overall level of taxes (including both direct and indirect taxes) as a percentage of GDP. Additionally, Oman scored 80.3 out of 100 in the Monetary Freedom Index, evaluating price stability and microeconomic intervention. The Trade Freedom Index, measuring the impact of tariffs and non-tariff barriers on imports and exports, recorded a score of 76.2 out of 100.

The National Competitiveness Office, in collaboration with the National Programme for Investment and Export Development (Nazhar), aims to achieve an even higher rank by developing an action plan in alignment with Oman Vision 2040. The goal is to secure a place among the top 40 countries globally.

The National Competitiveness Office actively monitors and enhances various international indicators, aligning efforts with relevant authorities. This concerted effort seeks to elevate the Sultanate of Oman’s performance in the Gulf, regionally, and globally, fostering a competitive and thriving economic landscape.