Development
Bank Approves 3,716 Loans in First Half of 2025

Muscat,
28 Jul (ONA) — The Development Bank approved 3,716 loans in the first half of
2025, with a total value of RO 110 million, marking a 13% growth compared to
the same period last year.

This
comes as part of the bank’s efforts to achieve the objectives of “Oman
Vision 2040”, aimed at promoting economic diversification and supporting
the private sector.

The
bank also seeks to boost investment in productive and service-oriented economic
sectors to enhance self-sufficiency in goods, products, and services.

Hamad
Salim Al Harthy, Head of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Financing
and Portfolio Management at the Development Bank, emphasized that these loans,
programs, and initiatives provided by the bank to productive and service
projects contribute significantly to the national economy. They support food
security requirements, reduce imports, and encourage individual initiatives
among citizens in entrepreneurship, alongside backing small and medium
enterprises (SMEs) and fostering self-employment.

In
a statement to Oman News Agency (ONA), Al Harthy highlighted that the most
prominent sectors financed included the manufacturing sector with a total value
of RO 38 million, the general professional services sector with RO 19 million,
the agricultural and livestock sector with RO 9 million, the fisheries sector
with RO 14 million, and the mining sector with RO 8 million.

He
further noted that among the key projects financed by the Development Bank in
the first half of this year were those in Muscat Governorate (RO 25 million),
South A’Sharqiyah Governorate (RO 14 million), South Al Batinah Governorate (RO
11 million), North Al Batinah Governorate (RO 18 million), and Al Wusta
Governorate (RO 8 million).

Al
Harthy stated that the increased lending activity of the Development Bank
empowers Omani youth to implement their entrepreneurial projects across
promising economic sectors. He underlined the bank’s commitment to redoubling
its efforts and expanding its services to strengthen its role in enabling the
SME sector, increasing its contributions to GDP, and enhancing local value
addition.

It
is worth noting that the Development Bank strives to provide attractive support
and facilities to various sectors in line with the government’s direction to
bolster national industries and achieve local value addition.

—
Ends/AH