Giving a fillip to education, Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Higher Education to sponsor the training of a further 50 students as teachers so they can return to work in schools in their local towns and villages.
The move is part of the Tawteen initiative launched three years ago with the aim of reducing teacher turnover and consolidating local education systems in some of the more remote parts of the Sultanate.
By the end of the year, the total number of students enrolled in the Tawteen programme will be 369, of which 175 are sponsored by PDO.
PDO External Affairs and Value Creation Director Abdul-Amir Abdul-Hussein Al-Ajmi signed
the MoU to further support the initiative with HE Dr Abdullah Mohammed Al Sarmi,
the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE), and HE Saud
Salim Al Balushi, the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education.
Saud Al Balushi said: “Tawteen programme for teaching staff in remote villages is one of
the strategic initiatives adopted by the Ministry to provide Omani teachers in remote villages. It contributes to the stability of teaching staff and the development and improvement of the educational process as well as providing job opportunities in these villages.”
PDO also signed another MoU with H.E. Dr Abdullah Mohammed Al Sarmi to support a further 150 students under its Community Scholarship Programme (CSP).
This gives students from PDO’s concession area the freedom to choose any undergraduate
programme that suits their interests and provides a monthly allowance to support them for five years up to Bachelor degree level.
Dr Abdullah Mohammed Al Sarmi said: “This MoU confirms the importance of partnership
and integration between the public and private sectors. The MoU combined with the Tawteen teacher training scheme and in addition to the many other efforts of support, show PDO’s social responsibility commitment towards the community
and its interest to support the Omani people.”
He added: “I hope that all the students work hard to benefit from such opportunities and
complete their education to serve their country”.
Abdul-Amir Al-Ajmi said: “Tawteen and Community scholarships programmes come as part of our continuous commitment to support our local communities in many different ways.
“For example, the Community Scholarship Programme provides students with the opportunity to achieve higher education qualification in a wide range of majors, which will help them to get rewarding careers later on.
“In contrast, the Tawteen Initiative was launched in 2016 in order to reduce staff turnover, help those accepted to build meaningful careers as teachers and to enhance the quality of education and school standards in our concession area.”
At the event, PDO also recognised the efforts of 15 outstanding students from the two
programmes by awarding them prizes.