Women at Work in Oman’s Emerging Private Sector: Opportunities and Constraints of Female Labor Participation in a Rentier Economy in Transition

The aim of this research is to gain an understanding of the nature of female formal labor participation in the Sultanate of Oman, both in terms of opportunities and challenges. As private sector development is an important precondition to a sustainable post-oil economy, the research focuses, in particular, on addressing the challenge of increasing female employment in the private sector. The research is centered on finding out the structure and segmentation of the labor force in Oman and the pattern of formal labor participation of Omani women in the country. It also seeks to investigate the determinants of Omani female employment and how they have affected women’s participation in the labor force. Furthermore, it intends to study the perceptions and expectations of Omani women of public versus private sector employment and the main constraints and opportunities they identify with formal employment in the public and private sector. Finally, the research seeks to identify the opportunities for policy intervention to further promote and encourage female labor participation, specifically in Arab Gulf rentier economies.