Oman achieves new milestone in government digital transformation journey
MUSCAT : The Sultanate of Oman achieved a new milestone in its government digital transformation journey by recording an overall score of 75 per cent in the Government Electronic and Mobile Services (GEMS) Maturity Index for 2025, issued by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), compared to 72 percent recorded in 2024.
This confirms the success of national efforts to develop more efficient and higher-quality digital services; and to reinforce a governmental approach that places the beneficiary at the heart of the development process, driving continuous improvement and elevating user experience.
The Government Electronic and Mobile Services Maturity Index is a benchmark evaluation tool launched by ESCWA based on three main pillars: service availability and sophistication, service usage and user satisfaction; and public outreach.
The number of institutions covered by the evaluation last year reached 27 institutions and 93 services, spanning several sectors including commerce and industry, education, health, labour, tourism, justice, transport, traffic, police, municipal and social affairs; and finance.
The results showed that the Sultanate of Oman achieved advanced performance in the core pillars of the index. In the public outreach pillar, Oman achieved a score of 86 per cent in 2025 compared to 76 per cent in 2024. In the service availability and sophistication pillar, it achieved 81 per cent in 2025 compared to 80 per cent in 2024, while achieving 65 per cent in the service usage and user satisfaction pillar compared to 63 per cent in 2024, reflecting continuous progress in developing the government digital services ecosystem and enhancing its effectiveness.
In terms of digital services and supporting infrastructure, the Sultanate of Oman achieved advanced results in a number of indicators during 2025, including 96 per cent in the index for the availability of digital content supporting services, 96 per cent for service uptime across various digital channels, 96 per cent for the environment surrounding the deployment of emerging technologies, 91 per cent for the level of integration among government entities and 89 per cent for service access via digital identity — reflecting the integration of government efforts in building an interconnected and more efficient digital system.
The results also showed a noticeable improvement in several qualitative indicators related to digital service quality and delivery efficiency. The percentage of new services accompanied by marketing and awareness campaigns rose from 76 per cent in 2024 to 97 per cent in 2025, while the percentage of new services accompanied by institution-level marketing campaigns increased from 64 per cent to 93 per cent over the same period.
Furthermore, the results demonstrated progress in open data indicators, as the level of open data availability increased from 80 per cent in 2024 to 89 per cent last year and formats for providing open data jumped from 77 per cent to 97 per cent, while the quality score of open data reached 91 per cent, reinforcing transparency, data accessibility and reuse.
Regarding user experience, user satisfaction across the electronic portal rose to 90 per cent in 2025 compared to 89 per cent in 2024, alongside achieving 98 per cent in response to support requests and 93 per cent in ease of using digital services.
Dr Ali bin Amer al Shaithani, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Information Technology for Communications and Information Technology; and Chairman of the Technical Committee for the National Digital Transformation Programme, stated that the results achieved by the Sultanate of Oman in ESCWA's Government Electronic and Mobile Services Maturity Index for 2025 reflect the level of progress in the government digital transformation ecosystem. This, he added, is resulting from a clear national vision and effective integration among various government institutions in developing digital services and enhancing their quality and efficiency.
Al Shaithani noted that the noticeable improvement in several indicators related to user experience, service accessibility and deployment of modern technologies embodies a governmental commitment to providing easier, more reliable digital services focused on beneficiaries' needs, contributing to elevating their experience, fulfilling the targets of Oman Vision 2040 and consolidating Oman’s position as a leading destination in digital transformation and government innovation.
He expressed his appreciation to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia for its role in supporting efforts to develop digital government services and promoting the exchange of expertise and best practices across Arab countries.
Al Shaithani emphasised the efforts of national government institutions that contributed to achieving this progress and elevating Oman's ranking in the index. He called for continued work towards ongoing improvement and development, as well as enhancing integration and innovation in digital service delivery to elevate beneficiary experience and enhance the quality of services provided to citizens and residents, in line with the national priorities of Oman Vision 2040 and the government's direction towards building a digital economy based on innovation and modern technologies.
