Oman

Oman is a small sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bounded by the United Arab Emirates to the north, Yemen to the south, and Saudi Arabia to the west; its eastern shoreline stretches from the Gulf of Oman to the open waters of the Arabian Sea. Beyond the narrow Al-Batinah coastal plain and the Al-Hajar mountains is a wide interior desert covering a wealth of oil and natural gas. Since 1970, oil has been the key factor in Omani life, and has dramatically improved the health and welfare of its people.

At 212,960 square kilometers, Oman is roughly the size of Kansas. The population is 3,102,229 and growing at 3.28 percent a year. The birth rate is 36.24 per 1,000 people, and the fertility rate is 5.77 children per woman. Life expectancy at birth is 71.14 years for men and 75.72 year for women.

Most Omanis live in urban areas, with only 27 percent of the population classified as rural. Population density is low at eight people per square kilometer. Native Omanis are ethnically Arab, and 75 percent are Ibadhi Muslim.

Like many Gulf states, Oman has a large immigrant population, with 577,293 nonnationals living there in 2006. Most of these immigrants are from south Asia, and they fill the majority of the country's low-pay-ing, service-industry jobs. The World Bank classifies Oman as an upper-middle income nation, with an average per capita income of $7,830 a year.

Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said has been the ruling monarch since 1970, and has poured untold amounts of money into Oman's medical infrastructure. Health-care is free and universal. Under his rule, life expectancy has risen from around 50 years to 73 years.

The Ministry of Health is the country's main health services provider. It maintains a network of hospitals and clinics across the country and oversees hospitals run by Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, the Ministry of Defense, the Royal Oman Police and Petroleum Development of Oman, as well as a growing number of private hospitals and clinics. The Ministry of Health also runs the Central Blood Bank and pharmaceutical distribution through the Directorate General of Pharmaceutical Affairs.

The sultanate has long been dependent on expatriate healthcare professionals. In 2005, only 27 percent of doctors and 59 percent of nurses were Omani. Under the Sultan's urging, the Ministry of Health has launched a program of “Omanization,” increasing training programs for nurses and technicians and promoting medical school programs. It is expected to take several years for these efforts to take off.

Oman has virtually eliminated several major communicable diseases. The immunization rate for children is 99 percent. Malaria cases have dropped from 30,000 a year in 1990 to 547 in 2005. The HIV/AIDS rate is 0.1 percent, and there is an active control program for all sexually transmitted diseases.

Most deaths in Oman come from noncommunicable causes, primarily vascular diseases. In urban areas, up to 50 percent of the population are overweight, increasing the rates of diabetes and heart disease. As quality of life increases, Oman will have to find a way to educate citizens in the dangers these lifestyle-re-lated risks. Challenges also remain in healthcare for women and children. A 2002 study found that 38 percent of Omani women marry a first cousin and 52 percent marry a second cousin.

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