The Council of Ministers is the main body of the executive branch of the government in the Sultanate of Oman. Where the legislative and judiciary branches are the responsibility of other entities, the Council of Ministers is responsible for drawing up and implementing state policies. This blog post will highlight four interesting facts about the Council of Ministers you may not know!
The Sultan is the Prime Minister?
The current Prime Minister is Sultan Haitham. However, the Basic Statute of the State allows the Sultan to appoint someone else to be the Prime Minister. Most people don’t know that there was a period of time the Sultan actually appointed a Prime Minister. This happened between the years 1970 – 1972, where Sultan Qaboos appointed Sayyid Tariq bin Taimur (Sultan Haitham’s father) as Prime Minister.
Who Qualifies for the Council of Ministers?
For a person to be appointed a member of the Council of Ministers, they must be at least 30 years of age and they must be of Omani nationality by origin. The age requirement is to balance appointing young and talented leaders, while also ensuring they have the required experience.
Executive but with legislative roles?
The Council of Minister has many functions as the main body of the executive branch of the government, such as overseeing the functioning of the administrative apparatus of the state, monitoring the performance of its duties, and coordinating between its units. However, the Council of Ministers also drafts laws and royal decrees, which can be seen as being interconnected with the legislative branch of the government. If you are further interested in understanding the separation of powers in Oman, check out this post on our blog.
Ministers On Boards of Public Companies?
The Basic Statute of the State prohibits members of the Council of Ministers from being members of any board of directors of any public joint stock company (SAOG) during their tenure. However, they are not restricted from being members of boards of directors of other forms of companies, such as LLCs, and SAOCs.
Conclusion
The Council of Ministers remains one the most crucial bodies in the government of the Sultanate of Oman. You can learn more about it by reading the Basic Statute of the State in full in English at the link below:
