MUSCAT : The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion has stepped up field monitoring across Oman to ensure that commercial and industrial establishments comply with laws, regulations and approved standards.

The first half of 2026 witnessed extensive inspection activity covering product quality, intellectual property rights, fuel stations, electronic payment services, industrial licensing and standards compliance.

Hilal bin Mohsen Al-Amri, Director of the Inspection Department at the ministry, said the results reflect the scale of field efforts carried out by inspection teams across the governorates.

He said the ministry remains committed to strengthening fair institutional oversight, protecting consumer rights, safeguarding intellectual property and ensuring that products and services available in the market meet approved standards.

According to Al-Amri, 36 inspection visits were carried out under the Intellectual Property Rights Law targeting restaurants, cafes and retail outlets during the first half of the year.

Inspection teams issued 32 written warnings to establishments found to have imitated or infringed trademarks in the food, personal care and household cleaning sectors. A further four written warnings were issued to restaurants and cafes.

The ministry also carried out awareness campaigns aimed at ensuring that Omani markets remain free from counterfeit products.

Oversight efforts also covered fuel filling stations, with 182 inspection visits conducted in Muscat Governorate to verify compliance with regulations governing their establishment and operation.

Authorities also handled 18 reports submitted through the “Tajawob” platform.

In the area of mandatory electronic payment services at commercial centres and shops, inspection teams dealt with 198 field reports, issued 17 violations and handed out 12 written warnings.

Industrial inspection activities included 72 field visits to industrial facilities to verify that their actual operations matched their registered industrial licences.

Seven industrial facilities holding a national product identity licence were also inspected to verify local added-value ratios in line with Ministerial Decision No. 62/2022.

The ministry additionally conducted field visits to 65 industrial facilities in Muscat Governorate to assess their actual requirement for expatriate manpower and ensure that manpower requests were proportionate to the size of operations.

Inspection teams also visited liquefied cooking gas depots to verify compliance with approved land areas and permitted uses in line with Ministerial Decision No. 185/2024.

In the field of standards and laboratory testing, inspectors worked with the National Centre for Measurement and Calibration to verify legal measuring instruments.

A total of 172 commercial scales were calibrated, with all of them recording 100 per cent conformity.

Inspectors also surveyed and examined 13,671 product samples to verify the presence of the Gulf Conformity Mark and the government stamp required for precious metals.

The inspections resulted in 168 violations involving goods that did not conform to approved standards.

Al-Amri said the results demonstrate the ministry’s continued commitment to maintaining an active field presence and protecting the rights of both consumers and investors.

He added that continued investment in inspection tools and greater coordination with relevant government entities would help improve compliance levels, reduce the circulation of non-conforming goods and strengthen the safety and stability of Omani markets.

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