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Muscat Daily
15 hours ago
- General
- Muscat Daily
Omani navigator Ibn Majid's manuscript earns Unesco honour
Paris – Oman has received official recognition from Unesco for inscription of the manuscript Al Nuniyah al Kubra (The Great Nuniyah) by renowned Omani navigator Ahmad ibn Majid in the Memory of the World register. The certificate was handed over during a meeting in Paris on Tuesday between H E Amna bint Salem al Balushi, Oman's Permanent Representative to Unesco, and Dr Tawfiq al Jelassi, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information at the organisation's headquarters. Inclusion of The Great Nuniyah is the result of joint efforts by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, in coordination with the Omani National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, and Oman's Permanent Delegation to Unesco. The manuscript is regarded as a landmark in the field of marine science and navigation. Inscribed in April 2025, The Great Nuniyah is the second Omani manuscript to be recognised under Unesco's Memory of the World programme. The first was The Mine of Secrets in Oceanography by navigator Nasser bin Ali al Khadouri, added in 2017. Ibn Majid's work documents maritime geography and ancient shipping routes in detail. It also records societies encountered during his voyages and provides insight into anchoring techniques and marine life. Significantly, while earlier scholars divided the Earth into seven northern regions, Ibn Majid extended the classification by introducing seven regions in the southern hemisphere. The Memory of the World programme was established by Unesco in 1992 to safeguard documentary heritage at risk of loss. Manuscripts are selected based on criteria such as historical importance, rarity, authenticity and cross-cultural impact.
Observer
a day ago
- Science
- Observer
Dialogue debates libraries' role in sustainable development
MUSCAT: The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth on Monday conducted a dialogue session titled 'Culture, Library Science, and Sustainable Development' as part of the Civilisational Horizons programme. The session debated the challenges facing libraries due to the digital revolution and the spread of the Internet, and how libraries have been able to adapt to these transformations and provide reliable information. It also highlighted the role libraries play in supporting education, scientific research and innovation. The session addressed the relationship between culture and Library and Information Science (LIS), and the role of libraries as cultural institutions that have contributed throughout the ages to enriching human culture and promoting the values of pluralism, tolerance and freedom of expression. The session highlighted the vital role libraries play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by organising knowledge and managing the vast intellectual output through smart systems that keep pace with technological developments. The session discussed the contributions of libraries to enhancing artificial intelligence, thanks to their vast databases, and their role in training users to use these technologies to produce reliable and knowledge-based texts. It also addressed the reality of LIS in the Sultanate of Oman, the information strategy and digital transformation within the Oman Vision 2040 as well as the most prominent challenges facing the library sector in the Sultanate of Oman. It also reviewed investment opportunities in cultural and creative industries and the role of libraries in this field. — ONA
Observer
6 days ago
- Health
- Observer
"SAY NO TO Drugs" Programme integrates awareness drive into Sport
Muscat: The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth organised an awareness initiative yesterday under the slogan 'Say No to Drugs,' targeting students participating in the summer sports programs in Muscat Governorate. The initiative aimed to raise awareness among teenagers about the dangers of drug use and its negative impact on mental, physical, and social health. As part of the Ministry's ongoing efforts to promote community awareness, the initiative focused on educating youth, their families, and educational institutions about the factors that lead some teenagers to experiment with drugs, such as peer pressure, curiosity, and a lack of familial or religious guidance. The event also emphasised the importance of family communication and parental monitoring, particularly during adolescence, a critical stage marked by rapid intellectual and behavioural changes. The initiative included a specialised awareness lecture delivered by Yahya Al Riyami, a mental health specialist from the Executive Office of the National Committee for Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances. He stated that the main objective of the lecture was to equip youth and school students with preventive skills to help them avoid falling into addiction. Al Riyami explained that the lecture covered several key topics, starting with an introduction to the role of the National Committee. He emphasised that the Sultanate of Oman places top priority on this issue, having established specialised committees to address prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation. The lecture also provided a detailed explanation of the different types of drugs and their devastating effects on the nervous system, as well as discussing the main causes of drug use, with bad company being a major factor. He stressed that the inevitable outcomes of drug use without treatment or rehabilitation are either imprisonment or death and emphasised that early prevention and community awareness are the most effective ways to combat this scourge. The lecture also addressed essential life skills students need to protect themselves from drugs, such as planning, time management, effective communication, emotional expression, problem-solving, assertive refusal, and self-confidence building. Speaking about the importance of raising awareness during adolescence, Al Riyami said At this age, students undergo intellectual and behavioural changes and are sometimes driven by a desire to experiment, which may lead to poor decisions. Therefore, they must possess enough awareness to understand the potential consequences of any negative experience, especially drug use. Regarding the committee's plans, Al Riyami revealed ongoing educational programs in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, implemented in Cycle 2 schools to promote behavioural skills. He also mentioned a nationwide community competition, now in its fourth edition, with the participation of 28 wilayats, compared to just 10 in the first edition, reflecting growing societal awareness. He added that the committee also targets parents through specialised awareness plans, which include the production of video clips and short films, as well as organising awareness exhibitions in shopping malls, with the goal of delivering preventive messages in an engaging and direct way to all segments of society. Student Hussam Al Rashdi noted that the lecture addressed several important aspects, particularly the emphasis on not remaining silent in case of suspected drug dealers inside the school. He stressed the need for immediate reporting to the school administration to ensure proper handling of such situations and prevent the spread of drugs among students. From her side, Ahlam Al Khamisi, Sports Activity Specialist for the 2025 Summer Sports Program in Muscat Governorate, affirmed that the program is rich with diverse activities that go beyond training, focusing also on instilling community values and raising awareness, in line with Oman Vision 2040. She noted that dedicated anti-drug awareness campaigns were carefully tailored to suit different age groups, starting from ages 7 to 11, based on their level of understanding an approach that led to strong engagement from children, who asked thoughtful questions that reflected growing awareness. She added that today's event featured an intensive discussion session for the 12 to 16 age group, held in cooperation with the National Committee for Combating Drugs. This session concluded a series of shorter workshops conducted earlier. Al Khamisi also emphasised the important role of parents in following up with their children after such awareness sessions and encouraging open dialogue about the dangers of drug use.
Observer
7 days ago
- Health
- Observer
'Say No to Drugs' programme integrates awareness drive into sports
Ahmed al Kaabi Muscat, July 16 The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth organised an awareness initiative under the slogan 'Say No to Drugs', targeting students participating in the summer sports programmes in Muscat Governorate. The initiative aimed to raise awareness among teenagers about the dangers of drug use and its negative impact on mental, physical and social health. As part of the ministry's ongoing efforts to promote community awareness, the initiative focused on educating youth, their families and educational institutions about the factors that lead some teenagers to experiment with drugs such as peer pressure, curiosity and a lack of familial or religious guidance. The event also emphasised the importance of family communication and parental monitoring, particularly during adolescence, a critical stage marked by rapid intellectual and behavioural changes. The initiative included a specialised awareness lecture delivered by Yahya al Riyami, a mental health specialist from the Executive Office of the National Committee for Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances. He stated that the main objective of the lecture was to equip youth and school students with preventive skills to help them avoid falling into addiction. Al Riyami explained that the lecture covered several key topics, starting with an introduction to the role of the National Committee. He emphasised that the Sultanate of Oman places top priority on this issue, having established specialised committees to address prevention, treatment and rehabilitation. The lecture also provided a detailed explanation of the different types of drugs and their devastating effects on the nervous system, as well as discussing the main causes of drug use. He stressed that the inevitable outcomes of drug use without treatment or rehabilitation are either imprisonment or death and emphasised that early prevention and community awareness are the most effective ways to combat this scourge. The lecture also addressed essential life skills students need to protect themselves from drugs, such as planning, time management, effective communication, emotional expression, problem-solving, assertive refusal and self-confidence building. Speaking about the importance of raising awareness during adolescence, Al Riyami said, at this age, students undergo intellectual and behavioural changes and are sometimes driven by a desire to experiment, which may lead to poor decisions. Therefore, it is essential they possess enough awareness to understand the potential consequences of any negative experience, especially drug use. Regarding the committee's plans, Al Riyami revealed ongoing educational programmes in cooperation with the Ministry of Education, implemented in Cycle 2 schools to promote behavioural skills. He also mentioned a nationwide community competition, now in its fourth edition with the participation of 28 wilayats, compared to just 10 in the first edition. He added that the committee also targets parents through specialised awareness plans, which include the production of video clips and short films, as well as organising awareness exhibitions in shopping malls, with the goal of delivering preventive messages in an engaging and direct way to all segments of society. Hussam al Rashdi, a student, noted that the lecture addressed several important aspects, particularly the emphasis on not remaining silent in case of suspected drug dealers inside the school. He stressed the need for immediate reporting to the school administration to ensure proper handling of such situations and prevent the spread of drugs among students. Ahlam al Khamisi, Sports Activity Specialist for the 2025 Summer Sports Programme in Muscat Governorate, affirmed that the programme is rich with diverse activities that go beyond training, focusing also on instilling community values and raising awareness, in line with Oman Vision 2040. She noted that dedicated anti-drug awareness campaigns were carefully tailored to suit different age groups, starting from ages 7 to 11, based on their level of understanding, an approach that led to strong engagement from children, who asked thoughtful questions that reflected growing awareness. She added that today's event featured an intensive discussion session for the 12 to 16 age group. This session concluded a series of shorter workshops conducted earlier. Al Khamisi also emphasised the important role of parents in following up with their children after such awareness sessions and encouraging open dialogue about the dangers of drug use.
Observer
15-07-2025
- Business
- Observer
initiative to enhance community participation
JAALAN BANI BU ALI: The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth has launched the "Youth Initiatives Incubator 2025" in the Wilayat of Jaalan Bani Bu Ali in Al Sharqiyah South Governorate. This incubator is part of the ministry's continuous support for Omani youth and aims to enhance their community participation through qualitative and effective initiatives. The incubator targets owners of youth initiatives from various governorates across the Sultanate of Oman. These are non-profit youth projects specialising in specific areas and seeking to achieve a tangible social and developmental impact within the local community. The incubator focuses on developing the participating initiatives using a specialised guide. This guide aims to improve the quality of youth initiatives and enhance their capabilities in design, planning, implementation, funding, impact measurement and building sustainable partnerships. The incubator includes new concepts that boost the participants' efficiency in leading initiatives. The participants will also practically develop their initiatives, leveraging acquired knowledge and skills. Additionally, they will take part in recreational and field visits designed to foster team spirit and facilitate the exchange of experiences among youth leaders in Oman. The incubator represents a significant step towards supporting the sustainability of non-profit youth work, aligning with Oman Vision 2040, which places youth at the core of the development process. - ONA
