The area of Bandar Khayran (approximately 20 km2) has been identified as having potential for eco-tourism development and to this end the Ministry of Tourism Oman commissioned a project to collect all the necessary environmental information required for responsible planning of the area. The project collated all available information and conducted a gap analysis in order to design the surveys necessary to fill the gaps in available information. Surveys were then conducted, and a sensitivity analysis performed that allowed potential eco-tourism activities to be planned that used the available natural resources in as rational a way as possible. The project then went on to analyze the information requirements required for management and then applied best practices to develop a proposed zoning plan for the tourism use of the area.

OMRAN is the Government of Oman’s public company responsible for developing public private partnerships for the objective of developing Oman’s tourism sector. OMRAN is a partner in over 80% of Oman’s tourism projects, including the majority of the major developments. As well as conventional high end tourism, OMRAN intends to develop a niche market based on cultural and environmental tourism through the development of a series of specialized tourism products and facilities, including tourism development in the country’s protected areas. Specific work conducted by our team included:

• Development of eco-tourism facilities at Daymaniyat Islands National Nature Reserve
• Feasibility of turtle based tourism at Masirah Island
• Technical support for Steering Committee of Ras Al Hadd National Nature Reserve

Our team has provided specialist marine ecological advice with respect to the potential environmentally based tourism use in Mhleia, Khor Kalba and Sir Bu Nair Island. The work has included the identified of marine resources and identification of constraints and opportunities and long term management requirements.