Oscar Award for Khasab Fort

Oscar Award for Khasab Fort

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The Sultanate, represented by the Ministry of Tourism, has bagged the Oscar Award-2010 for the best historical place developed for tourism purposes in the world.The award was given to the project for rehabilitating and developing Khasab Fort in the Governorate of Musandam. Among the 250 global institutions, establishments and museums, which vied for top honours, Khasab Fort came first in the annual contest for museums and heritage places which was held in London recently.Her Excellency Dr Rajha Bint Abdulameer Bin Ali, Minister of Tourism, stated that the global award which was given to the Sultanate was considered as a great achievement for the strategy of the Sultanate. It is a recognition for the policies in developing the tourist places in Oman which the government follow in order to protect the history, heritage and culture that mark the Sultanate, in line with developing the infrastructure of tourism projects, she said.Rajha said that the award reflected how the ministry succeeded in implementing the future projects keeping in mind the priority of the tourism sector.“Through the tourism projects, the ministry opened job opportunities to Omanis and gave them chance to work as partners in such development projects,” she added.Rajha said that Khasab Fort project had also taken care of the welfare of the people in Khasab. It also helped the people to work in the project in addition to marketing their local products, she said. “These were the some of the points and ideas which gave more support to the Sultanate’s report referred to the competition jury panel about Khasab project,” the ministry said.She added that the selection of the Sultanate’s project had got big media hype among the participated countries.HE Mohammed Bin Hamoud Al Toobi, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Tourism, said that the award was an important achievement to the development march in the tourism sector under the wise leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said.“The Sultanate deserves such achievements, thanks to the wonderful planning and the perfect implementation ways followed in the Khasab project,” Toobi added.He said that the award was the fruits gained after the big efforts taken by the Ministry of Tourism to develop forts and other historical and heritage places spread across the Sultanate.He asserted that the Ministry of Tourism did its best to protect the identity and civilisation of Oman through rehabilitating such old places which would be provided with modern ways of displays for the craft industries and old components that exist in surrounding areas.Mohammed Bin Mahmoud Al Zedjali, Director-General of Tourism Development, who received the award in London, expressed his satisfaction over the achievement.The Sultanate could win the rare honour due to the tireless and combined efforts of the employees and officers of the tourism ministry, he said.Al Zedjali also invited the members of the organising committee of the competition to visit the Sultanate and tour the areas with historic and cultural importance in Oman.Khasab Fort at the governorate of Musandam is one of the most important historical places in Oman dated back to the 17th century. The place marks by its strategic location on the shore of the Arabian Sea. Khasab’s historical palaces included two towers built by Omanis and the wall and another building built later by the Portuguese.The fort was built with the locally available materials. The fort consists of two floors, the first one for the gate while the second floor includes wali’s room, court room, judge room, room for wali and his family, two rooms for troops and weapons, two prisons and a school for learning the Holy Quran and Arabic language.