Oman

Oman's education system is governed by the Council for Education, which is chaired by the sultan and operated by the Ministry of Education and Youth. With continued government support, the total number of pupils in state education had grown from 909 pupils in 1970 to 528,400 between 1995-1996, with 24,100 teachers to instruct them in 965 schools. By 1997 there were 967 schools identified at the primary, preparatory, and secondary levels, not including 106 private kindergartens and schools regulated by the Ministry of Education. Plans were initiated in 1997 to further develop technical, agricultural, and artistic/craft training at the intermediate and secondary levels.

The state has endeavored to make education available to all by providing free public education and encouraging the growth of private educational programs. Despite all of these government endeavors, education is not compulsory, which ultimately impacts the national literacy rate. Even though Oman's literacy rate is much better than many countries, the literacy rate would be expected to grow even more with a compulsory education system.