Statistical investigation of the economic impact of building a tanning industry in Oman

Leather is a durable and flexible material created by tanning animal rawhide and skin, often cattle hide. It can be produced at manufacturing scales ranging from cottage industry to heavy industry. People use leather to make various goods including shoes, hats, jackets, skirts, trousers, and belts, bookbinding, leather wallpaper, and as a furniture covering. It is produced in a wide variety of types and styles, decorated by a wide range of techniques.The GCC is a leather manufacturing hub, with $1.9 billion worth of dressed leather, luggage, handbags, saddlery, harnesses and footwear were produced in the Gulf region in 2014, with Saudi Arabia ($1.1 billion), the UAE ($468 million), and Qatar ($250 million) the region's big three leather producers.According to Euromonitor International, the value of leather imports and exports across GCC was US$3.9bn in 2013, including semi-finished and finished products, travel goods, accessories, handbags and footwear. The share of UAE was the biggest in GCC with US$2bn, followed by Saudi Arabia with US$1.1bn. With no tanneries, Oman is losing out on profits from the leather industry. Hide dealers feel that having tanneries in the sultanate can link the various sources of supply in the Middle East with leading leather manufacturers and designers worldwide. Oman is a major producer of animal hide, but the absence of tanneries forces dealers to send them to UAE from where the hides are exported to buyers across the world. This research project will collect data from some randomly selected slaughtering houses to estimate the total number of hides of different animals monthly/yearly available in Oman. This research will conduct a feasibility study to build Tannery industry in Oman. Estimating the amount of money currently Oman is losing and how much profit will be if Oman can build Tannery industry, process the skin here and trade directly to the world Market.