Oman, Japan to form $400m fund to invest in food sector

Oman’s biggest sovereign wealth fund has agreed with Japanese institutions to set up a joint $400m fund that will invest in food and agribusiness industries, Omani officials said on Sunday.

The fund will facilitate direct investment in Gulf Cooperation Council states by Japanese food and agribusiness firms, ranging from grains and feed to vegetables, milk and dairy products, logistics and research firms, they said, aiming to spend at least 35 per cent of the money in Oman.

The Gulf Japan Food Fund will be owned 37.5 per cent by Oman’s State General Reserve Fund. State-run Oman National Investments Development Co and Gulf Investment Corp, owned by the six GCC states, will hold a combined 12.5 per cent.

Japan’s Mizuho Bank and Norinchukin Bank will provide the remaining half of the capital.

The sultanate is trying to diversify its economy beyond oil, using state funds in international ventures that steer investment and technology back to Oman.