Oman has been ranked 16th in the world on the United Nations eParticipation Index, following the UN bi-annual E-Government Survey 2012.

The eParticipation index is indicative on how governments create an environment in which citizens can be more active, a press release stated.

The survey also showed improvement in terms of online citizen and business services indices. The ranking for e-services this year is at 35 compared to its position at 55 in the 2010 report.

Oman has also improved its overall ranking among 193 countries on the UN eGovernment Development Index. It has moved from the 82nd position in 2010 to 64th, advancing 18 positions as per the 2012 report.

The release stated that Oman is also among 25 member states that offer separate m-government sites. The eGovernment report evaluates components related to online services, e-participation, telecommunications and infrastructure and human capital.

With regards to the online services index, four sections correspond to the stages of e-government development: emerging, enhanced, transactional and connected. In the 2012 report, Oman has been evaluated at 57 per cent on the stage labelled connected.

This is due to an increase in citizen-centric services and the government’s willingness to give citizens a voice in policy-making, the press release said.

Dr Salim al Ruzaiqi, chief executive officer, ITA, said, “The report shows that Oman's government has made a great advancement in the field of e-participation, a main factor in determining e-readiness.”