Muscat:The total number of senior citizens in the Sultanate of Oman reached approximately 256,469 in 2025, with Omanis making up about 73.5 percent of this figure. This equates to 188,390 Omani senior citizens, representing an increase of roughly 4 percent compared to 2024.
According to Oman News Agency, statistical data from the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI) revealed that more than half of Omani senior citizens were concentrated in the governorates of Muscat, A'Dakhiliyah, and North Al Batinah. Projections suggest that the number of Omani senior citizens will rise to approximately 385,395 by 2040.
Health indicators showed a total of 46,517 hospital admissions among Omani senior citizens in Ministry of Health institutions in 2025, marking a decline of about 3 percent compared to the previous year. Respiratory system diseases accounted for 14 percent of these admissions. Moreover, deaths among Omani senior citizens in these institutions reached 2,596 in 2025, dropping by nearly 45 percent compared to 2024. Circulatory system diseases were responsible for 24 percent of these deaths.
Education indicators indicated that 33 percent of Omani senior citizens held no educational qualification in 2025, numbering 62,723, with females making up 68 percent of this group. Additionally, 26.3 percent of senior citizens had qualifications below the General Education Diploma.
Marital status data showed that 88 percent of male Omani senior citizens were married, while only 49 percent of female senior citizens were married.
Economic indicators highlighted that the old-age dependency ratio for Omani senior citizens was 10.8 in 2025, slightly up from 10.7 in 2024. Retirees comprised about 26 percent of the senior citizen population, while the number of employed senior citizens stood at 53.9 thousand, a decrease of roughly 5 percent compared to the previous year. The number of senior citizen business owners fell to 7,637 from 11,958 the previous year.
Ownership data revealed that 72 percent of Omani senior citizens owned one or more plots of land, and 51 percent owned one or more residential units in 2025. Additionally, 64.2 thousand senior citizens owned one or more vehicles.
Social protection indicators showed that the number of elderly benefit beneficiaries rose by about 6 percent to 174,662 in 2025, representing 93 percent of the total in this category. Muscat Governorate recorded the highest number of beneficiaries, with 38,192 people, making up 22 percent of the total. The number of beneficiaries of services provided to senior citizens also increased by nearly 20 percent to 6,996 in 2025.
The number of retirees registered in pension funds reached approximately 160 thousand, a decline of about 4 percent compared to the previous year, with government sector retirees accounting for 66 percent of the total. Additionally, 43 percent of female service leavers had resigned by the end of 2025.