‘Without Sultan Qaboos, We Would Be Yemen’: The Renaissance Narrative and the Political Settlement in Oman

Abstract

Oman's developmental trajectory is a 'positive outlier' to most post-colonial states, particularly those with significant natural resource reserves. Its trajectory confounds many of the usual expectations surrounding the impact of rentier incomes on conflict and inclusive development. This piece attempts to disentangle the threads of Oman's apparent good fortune to reveal characteristics of its political settlement that may (and may not) have salience elsewhere. This paper spotlights the influence of narrative and the non-domestic factors that played pivotal roles in the formation and evolution of the political settlement, suggesting that both have generally been understated within the literature to date.

Political Settlements and the Politics of Transformation: Where Do ‘Inclusive Institutions’ Come From?

“…The so-called 'Asian tigers', including South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and, most recently, China, are all good examples of this, as is the case of Oman in this special issue (Phillips & Hunt, 2017). These states oversaw a remarkable socio-economic transformation over a period of 50 years that was based on the selective incorporation of some groups (business elites) and not others (labour).…”

“…More controversially, contemporary Rwanda has also been able to develop a strong and widely shared vision for the future that is grounded on a re‐invented sense of nation that considerably downplays (or even denies) the importance of group‐based identities. And as Phillips and Hunt () point out in this special issue, that sense of unity and shared identity has been essential in anchoring the political settlement in Oman and harnessing its developmental transformation over the past few decades.…”

“…Curiously, this reluctance to engage with nation‐building has not always been in place. According to Phillips and Hunt (), in Oman, British officials believed that forging a narrative around Sultan Qaboos as the transformational leader of the country could play an important role in solidifying his authority, and they actively supported the dissemination and socialisation of such a narrative (including through media).…”

Life History of an Omani Woman, Nursing Pioneer, and Nurse Leader

“…Since 1970, Oman has developed advanced technology and progressive political, economic, and social structures (Al-Lamky, 2007;Al-Sinani, 2012;Goveas & Aslam, 2011). Today Oman's human development indicators are vastly improved from what they were in 1970 (Phillips & Hunt, 2017).…”

The exotic veil: Managing tourist perceptions of national history and statehood in Oman

“…Qaboos seized the throne in the midst of this conflict, and -with British supporthe eventually suppressed the insurgents, re-established order, and set to work on unifying the country. The succession and subsequent success of Sultan Qaboos in military, economic, social and nation-building terms meant that his accession marks the beginning of what is officially called the "Renaissance" of the country (Phillips & Hunt, 2017). A clear demarcation is thereby made in historical, political and economic discourse in Oman between the violent and impoverished time before his rule, and the period of political stability and prosperity after he took power.…”