Arabnet Arabnet

The Public Establishment for Industrial Estates in Oman – Madayn, represented by the National Business Centre, launched a pilot coding program for a number of Omani females from different governorates. The one-week coding program, which is being held at the Knowledge Oasis Muscat, aims at teaching women not only how to code to get a job, but also how to form an online business to create jobs for more women like themselves, and empower them with the skills to earn income from their own businesses. 

The coding programme comes as part of the first MENA Women’s Congress in the Sultanate to focus on empowering women through coding capabilities that will be held during the period from 14th to 16th October, 2019. Sponsored by Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), the MENA Women’s Congress in Oman comes under the initiative of the US-based CTEK Foundation. This initiative aims at supporting women in the region by crafting programmes that give women opportunities to learn coding as a business through online learning, digital bonding and forming a community through women-only business incubators. The congress will also discuss the outcomes of the ongoing pilot coding program and explore ways to continue enhancing coding capabilities among women in the Sultanate and the region.  

It should be noted that the coding program and the MENA Women’s Congress come along the lines of Madayn’s key cornerstones, which is to support entrepreneurship through its incubator programs such as the National Business Centre, Industrial Innovation Centre, as well as funding innovative startups. It is worth mentioning that the National Business Centre is an initiative by Madayn to offer promising Omani entrepreneurs a platform to develop their business ideas and advance them into growing ventures. Objectives of NBC comprise facilitating and supporting the growth of investable ideas into successful businesses; building entrepreneurial skills through dedicated and focused training, coaching and mentoring; and providing business support facilities from office space, administrative support, financial support and consultancy services that are crucial in ensuring the success and survival of new ventures.