The Political Economy of Internationalization and Privatization of Higher Education in the Sultanate of Oman

Brandenburg, Torsten

doi:10.1007/978-94-007-6821-5_18

Cited by 12 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…She argues that this proposal will "result in a more focused and productive delivery system and allow matters of accountability and transparency to be better addressed and managed" (Al-Lamki, 2002, p. 82 years, the number of private HEIs has increased dramatically to reach 28 out of the total 62 HEIs today, constituting more than a third of the total. As described by various studies, it is a fairly recent phenomenon with rapid expansion (Al-Lamki 2006;Al Harthy, 2011;Donn & Al Manthri, 20110;Brandenburg, 2012). The number of students enrolled in these private institutions for the academic year 2011/2012 was 9,941.…”

Section: The Governance Dilemmamentioning

confidence: 93%

“…As in other developing countries, the issues of funding, expansion, privatization and internationalization were the top priorities to be addressed (see Al-Lamki, 1992;AL-Hajri, 2002;Al-Ramadhani, 2003;Al-Bulushi, 2003;Al-Rahbi, 2004;Al-Hashmi, 2005;Al-Balushi, 2008;Al Harthy, 2011;Brandenburg, 2012). Although none of these studies has specifically discussed policy architecture or policy-making issues, they have engaged with some of the state's HE policies.…”

Section: Studies On Omani He Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Al-Lamki (2006) points to the dynamic and rapid expansion of the schooling system since 1970, which yielded strong demand for HE in Oman. Overall, the massive number of graduates from the schooling system at the beginning of 1980s drove the new State to spend time and money exploiting all the potentialities to develop a system of HE and catch up with developments in the world generally and the neighbouring Gulf countries specifically (Al-Lamki, 2002Donn & Al Manthri, 2010;Brandenburg, 2012).…”

Section: The State and Hementioning

confidence: 99%

“…It has engaged in non-stop reform to the system since 1986, leading to rapid expansion and transformation to suit the needs of the society and to meet global requirements (Donn & Al Manthri, 2010). Indeed, in the existing recent literature, the Omani HE system is always described as fast-growing and dynamic with prodigious aims to create knowledgeable and skilful graduates comparable with those produced by neighbouring states (Al-Lamki, 2006;Baporikar & Shah, 2012;Carroll, Razvi, Goodliffe & Al-Habsi, 2009;Donn & Al Manthri, 2010;Brandenburg, 2012). Overall, it can be seen from these texts that the Omani government has been committed since 1970 to providing all necessities and services free of charge to the Omani people and HE has been and will remain one of its top concerns.…”

Section: The State and Hementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Reviewing the literature shows that there has been an interest among Omanis and non-Omani researchers in studying at private HE institutions in Oman, because it is a relatively new phenomenon and area of research (see for example, Al Harthy, 2011;Al-Lamki, 2006;Donn & Al Manthri, 2010: Brandenburg, 2012. All these studies highlight the role of the private sector in creating more opportunities for Omanis and even non-Omanis to accommodate the increased demand for HE in the Sultanate.…”

Section: The Governance Dilemmamentioning

confidence: 99%

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Higher education policy architecture and policy-making in the Sultanate of Oman: towards a critical understanding

Al’Abri¹

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The higher education (HE) system in Oman is governed and controlled by the state and is thus a government managed sector in which the state is the chief policy player. The main aim of this study is to provide a critical understanding of the policy architecture and policy-making processes in Omani HE since 1986. More specifically, the study seeks: to describe the Omani HE policy-making architecture and its operation; to analyse the impact of this architecture and its operations on the HE system; and to investigate national, regional and global factors affecting HE policy.The study employed a qualitative methodology. Semi-structured interviews and document analysis were the methods used for generating data. The semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 43 policy-makers and others involved in Omani HE. The documents included:Royal Decrees, Ministerial decisions, Organizational charts of HEIs, Legislative documents, strategic plans, and meeting minutes. Those documents were from the post 1986 period, aligning with the time frame of the study. These documents are ready for use as they are published for the public. The data generated through interviews and document analysis were analysed thematically according to an inductive approach and through the lens of the theoretical framework.The study finds that the Omani political system results in a hierarchical approach to policy-making for the HE sector. This architecture has three levels-the top level of government, specialized bodies, and the field-with strong control concentrated at the top level of the government and weaker control available to agencies at the lower levels of the system. The study conceptualizes the policy-making architecture of the entire Omani HE system as a cascade of principal-agent games, showing that the Omani Government is a highly powerful controller of HE policy-making. The relationships between the different policy actors and bodies within this hierarchical architecture are documented and described in terms of four different scenarios: (1) policy development by the Education Council; (2) policies emanating from the Sultan; (3) policies emanating from the Cabinet and the Supreme Council for Planning; and (4) policies proposed by the Oman Council.A key argument of the study is that the Omani government developed and reformed its HE system in relation to national pressures for development, student demand, and regional and global pressures. The Omani HE system is situated in relation to national, regional and global contexts and thus, its policies were made and implemented in responses to complex intersections of these contexts. Nationally, pressure has been placed on HE policy by the political system of the state, the economy, the labour market, the schooling system, the history of the HE system, and broader social changes. Regionally, the study finds that Oman learned from, and borrowed much HE policy from, neighbouring Arab Gulf States, motivated by dynamics of both competition and cooperation. The ii Cooper...

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Section: The Governance Dilemmamentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Studies On Omani He Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%