Tuesday 08 / October / 2024
Muscat: Activities of “Urban October Conference and Home & Building Expo” continued for the second day at Oman Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Organised by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning, the event saw the holding of the “Investment Forum in Governorate Development Competition Projects”.
The activities were held under the auspices of HH Sayyid Marwan Turki Al Said, Governor of Dhofar.
The participants reviewed investment opportunities generated by winning projects in the 1st and 2nd editions of the “Governorate Development Competition (2023-2024)” whose total investment value stood at more than OMR82 million.
Six investment opportunities were identified as follows:
1. Al-Razaz Boulevard project in the Wilayat of Salalah in the Governorate of Dhofar (estimated value OMR40 million).
2. The “Ames Bay” development project in the Wilayat of Khasab in the Governorate of Musandam (investment value exceeding OMR7 million).
3. Rimal Park project in Khabat Al-Jaadan area in the Wilayat of Nakhal, Governorate of South Al Batinah (investment value OMR7 million).
4. “Al-Durra” project in the Wilayat of Al-Khabourah in North Al Batinah (investment value OMR9.8 million).
5. Jabal Shams “Grand Canyon” facade project in the Wilayat of Al Hamra (investment value exceeding OMR7.7 million).
6. “Ibri View” project in the Governorate of Al Dhahirah (investment value exceeding OMR10.8 million).
The conference also explores successful experiences in urban renovation projects in the governorates of Al Buraimi, Dhofar and South Al Batinah, as well as civil initiatives in A’Dakhiliyah Governorate.
As part of the activities of Urban October Conference, the “Basamat Competition” was launched within the framework of Sultan Haitham City project.
The contest seeks to engage youth in finding “impacts” in various fields in Sultan Haitham City. They look for architectural, artistic, technical, environmental, cultural and social features that can shape visions to be realised in what could be described as “a city for all”.
As part of the conference activities, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning launched an initiative codenamed as “Step Towards Owning Your Home”. It envisages the development of integrated residential neighbourhood projects.
The conference saw the launch of 8 investment opportunities for integrated residential plans and neighbourhoods.
During the conference, 77 usufruct agreements were signed for the development of a total area of more than one million square metres, to the tune of more than RO 20 million Omani. The agreements deal with development projects in various governorates.
The conference also saw the signing of agreements to purchase about 200 housing units that stem from integrated residential neighbourhood projects (for social housing beneficiaries), with a total value of more than OMR8.5 million.
In an effort to enhance youth engagement in urban development and inspire them to come up with innovative ideas, the 4th Urban Planning Hackathon was launched under the theme “City Challenge”. It seeks to develop a video game that suits all ages and offers a cultural aspect that allows users to explore future cities in an entertaining and exciting way.
This contest involves the participation of more than 100 young men and women, forming 19 teams from various specializations (including architecture, urban planning, computer science, information systems, entrepreneurship, programming, and game development).
In addition, a “Minecraft challenge” was launched to set up landmarks from Sultan Haitham City on virtual reality. In this challenge, the contestants compete to transfer the specified landmark onto virtual Minecraft spaces according to specific criteria. -ONA
