By: Times of Oman__ The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority has announced the start of applications from enterprises to benefit from the on-the-job training initiative; To employ job seekers in small and medium enterprises in its third edition.

The Authority said: “Nearly 1,200 Omani enterprises benefited from the initiative last year. The initiative includes subsidising the wages of workers in small and medium enterprises registered with the Authority for a period of one year. The candidate for employment is required to be a job seeker who has not previously benefited from supported government initiatives. If the candidate has resigned, he must have completed a 3-month period as a job seeker in the Ministry of Labour system. The age of the candidate should not exceed 40 years. The candidate's years of experience should not exceed 3 years, and he must have never worked in the same institution before.

Within the initiative, the Ministry of Labour will bear the costs of the monthly training grant for workers at a rate of 100% for a period of 12 months. The bachelor’s graduate is granted OMR 500 monthly, the university diploma graduate is granted OMR 400, and the general diploma graduate will be granted OMR 300.