Muscat: The Sultanate of Oman and the United Kingdom (UK) signed two letters of intent on Wednesday in the British capital, London, in the fields of space and artificial intelligence in education.
The singing of the two letters of intent took place within the framework of the state visit paid by His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik to the United Kingdom.
The two letters of intent were signed on the Omani side by Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, Foreign Minister, and Dr. Madiha bint Ahmed Al Shaibani, Minister of Education. On the British side, they were signed by Dr. Alice Bunn, Co-Director of the UK Space Agency, and Scott McDonald, Chief Executive of the British Council.
The first letter of intent pertains to enhancing cooperation in the space sector and exchanging expertise in space policies, scientific research, and innovation between the UK Space Agency and the Government of the Sultanate of Oman. Meanwhile, the second letter relates to the responsible utilization of artificial intelligence in education, supporting English language learning, and assisting teachers in using artificial intelligence safely and effectively in classrooms.
Dr. Madiha bint Ahmed Al Shaibani, Minister of Education, affirmed to Oman News Agency (ONA) that the signing of the letter of intent between the Ministry of Education and the British Council marks an important step toward strengthening educational cooperation and exploring the opportunities offered by artificial intelligence technologies to develop teaching and learning methods and build students' skills, in line with technological transformation and future requirements, and consistent with the targets of Oman Vision 2040.
She explained that this cooperation focuses on the joint design and implementation of a pilot project in a selected group of secondary schools in the Sultanate of Oman to develop students' English communication skills, particularly speaking and writing skills, enhance their labor market readiness skills, and raise their level of preparedness to enroll in higher education institutions whose programs are taught in English.
The Minister pointed out that the project includes building teachers' capacities to use learning tools supported by artificial intelligence and aligning educational activities with Omani curricula and the needs of participating schools, while adhering to the principles of safe and responsible use of modern technologies and the protection of students and data.
Dr. Madiha bint Ahmed Al Shaibani, Minister of Education indicated that the pilot project will be evaluated according to indicators agreed upon by both parties, so that its results contribute to developing educational practices and identifying opportunities for potential future expansion, thereby supporting evidence-based decision-making.
The Minister of Education concluded by emphasising that this partnership looks forward to benefiting from shared expertise in developing innovative learning environments and empowering students to acquire linguistic capabilities and future skills.