Shell has announced its fifth Gift to The Nation under the auspices of H.E. Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs during a ceremony held recently at the Grand Hyatt in Muscat. The event was attended by a large number of guests; graced by Excellencies and dignitaries from various public and private sectors in Oman.
This year, and in line with Shell’s ongoing commitment to foster the development of the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) sector in Oman and to promote energy sustainability and educational awareness, Shell announced it will launch a project to install use solar energy into a select number of Grade 10-12 secondary schools across Oman. The project will be initiated in 2016 with 4 pilot sites located in Al-Buraimi, Nizwa, Salalah and Muscat and will see further solar installations progressively installed into girls and boys schools across all Governorates over a 5 year period.
Inaugurating the event, Mr. Chris Breeze, Shell’s Country Chairman in Oman said that the solar power into schools project will be a first of its kind project for Oman. It will show how solar energy can help supplement existing electricity demand which currently is largely generated from either diesel or gas. By using Omani contractors to help install the solar installations we also help ccontribute to Oman’s energy & economy transition, by helping build a platform for development and implementation of small-scale solar projects in Oman. By putting these installations into public schools we also help boost interest in science, technology, innovation & entrepreneurship for Omani youth and awareness in Oman’s future energy transition”.
The second part of Shell’s Gift to the Nation initiative will focus on revamping Shell’s Intilaaqah project to continue to meet the growing needs of Omani entrepreneurs. Oman was the first country to launch the Shell Intilaaqah programme in the Middle East in 1995, and over 10,000 Omani female and male entrepreneurs have successfully graduated from the programme to date. The newly revamped Shell Intilaaqah will expand its current entrepreneur support services to also cover business start-ups and alumni support.
Irshad Al Lawati, Head-Corporate Affairs, Shell Development Oman, stated that through Intilaaqah in Oman over 1,600 businesses have been created and 30 SMEs financed where 900 employment positions have been sustained, 32% of which are Omani. The revamped Intilaaqah will continue to focus on helping entrepreneurs launch their own business, and in turn, contribute to Oman’s 2020 Vision.
Commenting on this occasion, H.E. Yusuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, said: “Shell’s Gift to the nation is a tribute to the long standing relationship Oman has with Shell. We hope that the full potential of the two announced initiatives are going to be utilized in the coming 5 years and we look forward to more sustainable and rewarding initiatives.”
The Gift to The Nation initiative was first launched in 1995 and follows on every five years, a time at which the company announces the launch of a significant contribution to Omani society. The initiative is a symbol of Shell’s deep gratitude to Oman – a country in which it has been present since 1937. Over the years, notable gifts to the nation have included the launch of Intilaaqah, establishment of the joint virtual reality center at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), followed by the establishment of the Shell Chair at SQU as well as a $10 million dollar grant to create the Intilaaqah Enterprise Fund.
In 2010, Shell’s Gift to the Nation saw the migration of Intilaaqah and Intilaaqah Enterprise Fund into a single programme under the brand name Shell Intilaaqah – offering a one stop shop for entrepreneurs to gain financial support for their businesses and benefit from other development services and consultancy.
About Shell’s Gift to The Nation initiative:

• Gift to the Nation is a tradition initiated by Shell in 1995 – the 25^th anniversary of Oman’s Renaissance, to launch every 5 years, a new project that carries a small further contribution to the development of Oman’s society and economy
• Shell’s Gift to the Nation projects are selected very carefully, with the involvement of experts from Shell and other external professionals with good knowledge of Oman and experience in dealing with matters of social investment
• The individual projects are structured in a way that allows us to see through the process of their implementation, and steer them towards realisation of the objectives developed for them