Since the establishment of National Objectives, PDO has trained Omani youths in various disciplines such as electrical technicians, mechanical technicians, instrumentation technicians, pipe fitters, scaffolders and riggers. To begin with, training was based on jobs in the oil and gas sector that had a low Omanisation percentage but a high workforce demand.
Since 2011, the success rate and attrition rate of PDO-sponsored programmes have resulted in the expansion of training to include disciplines simply based on contractor demand and areas where contractors face difficulties in Omanisation. Therefore, PDO currently sponsors training in technician, drilling, topographic and civil roles.
We started by focusing solely on high school graduates, but this has since developed to include high school drop-outs and college graduates with technical diplomas to target as many without jobs as possible. In addition, PDO is focusing efforts on one-of-a-kind specialised training programmes that are the first in the region, such as the 6G welding programme to train 400 Omanis to the highest international standard. Participants are certified through The Welding Institute, a UK-based organisation. The service provider is the only TWI-accredited facility outside of the UK.