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The long-debated adjustment change to the working week in Oman became effective on May 1, 2013 when the country adopted Friday and Saturday as the official weekend for both public and private sectors. The change is expected to boost the Omani economy by aligning government and business with the regional work week and with Oman’s banking sector which has operated a Friday/Saturday weekend since July 2008. Oman also stands to benefit from the closer alignment with international trade norms, in particular for the import-export industry, ports, free trade zones and tourism sector.

Policy makers were keen for broader socio-political reasons to eliminate the discrepancy between public and private sector working conditions as the government seeks to Omanise the private sector, reduce dependency on expatriate labour and to diversify the country’s economy.