Oman plans Smart Cities in Suhar, Nizwa and Salalah

Oman plans Smart Cities in Suhar, Nizwa and Salalah

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Planning has kicked off an ambitious initiative to support the development of ‘Smart Cities’ in three major locations of the Sultanate of Oman: Suhar, Nizwa and Salalah.

To this end, the Ministry has invited international urban engineering consultancy firms to bid for a trio of contracts for the development of designs and masterplans linked to the establishment of Smart Cities in the three locations.

The initiative stems from a landmark Oman National Spatial Strategy (ONSS) first unveiled by the Ministry in March 2021. Billed as “the essential enabler for the implementation of Oman Vision 2040”, the Spatial Strategy sets out a broad framework for urban growth in the country over the next 20 years. It also seeks to ensure that key national cities remain competitive and their growth aligned with the UN Goals for Sustainable Development 2030.

One of the many national-level and governorate-level priorities set out in the Spatial Strategy calls for the establishment of “smart, sustainable and vibrant cities” suitably designed to sustain a high quality of life, work and leisure. These Smart Cities will be underpinned by “diversified and easily accessible means of transport, integrated with sound and targeted urban planning and sustainable world-class