Defence

Oman spends a quarter of its budget on defence

April 8, 2025, 9:56 AM

A Royal Army of Oman soldier on a training exercise in Rabkut. The country spends roughly 6.5% of GDP on defence

Defence spending ate up just over a quarter of Oman’s budget in 2024, according to a government report.

Allocations for defence and security stood at OR2.5 billion ($6.5 billion) for the first 10 months of last year, said the country’s latest Monthly Statistical Bulletin.

This was nearly 26 percent of the sultanate’s total expenditure in that period, which stood at OR9.7 billion – matching the proportion spent in previous years.

Oman’s defence spending was OR2.4 billion in the first 10 months of 2023.

The January to October 2024 defence spend accounted for 36 percent of current expenditure, which also includes funding for civil ministries and servicing of public debt. The total for current expenditure was OR6.9 billion.

The OR2.5 billion figure equated to 6.5 percent of the country’s full-year 2024 GDP of OR38.3 billion. Oman, which is heavily reliant on oil and gas exports, has emerged as one of the world’s largest defence spenders relative to GDP.

Figures from the Arab Monetary Fund, an Arab League economic institution based in Abu Dhabi, show its military and security spending has remained above 30 percent of current expenditure over the past 20 years.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE are also heavy spenders on defence, according to the fund.

Oman recorded a budget surplus for January to October 2024 despite its heavy investment in defence and security. The surplus was about OR530 million, thanks to an 11 percent increase in oil revenues to just over OR6 billion for the 10 months.