Fifth Conference of Regional Network of Central Banks Begins in
Muscat

Muscat, 11 Feb 2026 (ONA) — The Fifth Conference of the
Regional Network of Central Banks began in Muscat today. The two-day event is
hosted by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO), in cooperation with the Office of the
Chief Economist for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan at
the World Bank Group.

The conference aims to strengthen the role of research in
supporting decision- making and the formulation and implementation of economic
and financial policies, as well as deepening dialogue on the development
challenges and opportunities facing the region’s economies.

The conference also serves as an annual platform that brings together
a distinguished group of researchers and academics to exchange expertise on regional
and international economic and political developments, with the objective of enhancing
the research and analytical capacities of professionals working in monetary and
financial institutions across the region.

A range of important economic research topics will be discussed
throughout the conference sessions, in addition to training workshops designed
to leverage participants’ expertise in building research capacity for
specialized researchers in the Sultanate of Oman and the wider region. This is
expected to contribute to improving the quality of research output within
institutions involved in the formulation and implementation of economic and
financial policies.

This research gathering brings together a group of leading
economists specializing in economic reform policies, economic transformation
and mechanisms for addressing emerging technological developments. Over the two
days of the conference, fifteen papers selected through an international
competitive research process will be presented. These papers focus primarily on
resilience and economic reform in times of uncertainty, the redesign of fiscal
and monetary policies and economic transformation in the region.

They also emphasize rapid technological developments, including
artificial intelligence, financial technologies and big data analytics, and
their role in reshaping macroeconomic strategies, financial systems, and
structural reform pathways. In addition, discussions will attempt to explore
the most effective ways to build more resilient economies capable of
confronting persistent structural challenges such as dependence on oil, high
unemployment rates and the limited contribution of the private sector to
economic growth.

On the sidelines of the conference, training workshops will be
held to build research capacities and skills among researchers from Oman and the
region, and to strengthen the research agenda in line with best practices. A
number of participating economists will be invited to deliver three workshops
focusing on the use of non-traditional data in macroeconomic research, the
application of machine learning in economic policy studies and natural language
processing in economic texts.

— Ends/AH