Author: Mohamed Reehaan

Marriott International Maldives held an inauguration ceremony on 08th May 2023, to mark the start of its apprenticeship program this year. With this program, Marriott International Maldives has commenced 100 new apprenticeship opportunities under the National Apprenticeship Program. The launching event was held at Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa, and was graced by the presence of Maldives Vice President Faisal Naseem along with Minister of Youth, Sports, and Community Empowerment Ahmed Mahloof, and the Area Director of Human Resources Singapore, Malaysia and Maldives, Marriott International Emma Jones. Speaking at the function, Vice President Naseem reiterated the administration’s commitment…

Bank of Maldives (BML) introduces two-factor authentication (2FA) feature for mobile banking logins. The new security update adds an extra layer of verification, to ensure that the login is by the registered customer, and will be available to all registered internet banking customers. Following the update, customers are required to enter a one-time password (OTP) as the second step to the log-in process, which will be generated from the authenticator app or sent directly to the customer’s registered mobile number. BML has requested all registered internet banking customers to update the app to access the new feature. With the added…

Dr. Abdul Samad Memorial Hospital in Gaafu Dhaalu Thinadhoo has introduced chemotherapy services on Sunday, May 07. Chemotherapy services in the hospital was officially introduced during a ceremony held for the occasion by Deputy CEO Abdul Azeez Rifaau. The services commenced in the hospital with a two-bed ward specialized for cancer treatment. According to Rifaau, when the services launched the hospital had three cancer patients already registered with them. Meanwhile, Dr. Abdul Samad Memorial Hospital has opened registration for chemotherapy services. The hospital also said it provided relevant training to its doctors and nurses with the help of Hulhumale’ Hospital…

Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has inaugurated the first-ever international art festival in the Maldives; “Faruma – International Youth Art Festival 2023”. The festival was launched by Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Community Empowerment in collaboration with Maldivian Artist Community. The festival will bring together talented local artists from across the country to showcase their work. The seven-day event is aimed at all age categories. At the launching ceremony, Minister of Youth Ahmed Mahloof affirmed the ministry’s commitment to create various platforms for local artists to showcase their talents. “Today, we have proved the ministry’s only mandate is not football…

Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has launched a social media marketing campaign for the Chinese market on Weibo and WeChat. The campaign is held from March to May 2023. The social media marketing campaign “will inspire Chinese travelers to choose the Maldives as their destination of choice” following the reopening of Chinese borders for leisure travel. The campaign includes 45 original posts and 12 original articles on the Visit Maldives accounts for Weibo and WeChat promoting the products, experiences, and segments of the Maldives. Additionally, the campaign will also be conducted to give away a free holiday to…

The total revenue (excluding grants) observed an increase of MVR605.6 million, a 33% increment, in February 2023 when compared with the same month last year. This increment was mostly driven by the growth in non-tax revenue. As such, non-tax revenue rose by MVR345.8 million, while tax revenue rose by MVR260.8 million. Total expenditure (excluding amortization) rose by MVR152.7 million, a 5% increment, in February 2023 compared with the corresponding month in 2022. This increment was owed to the growth in recurrent expenditure, which increased by MVR194.6 million, while capital expenditure declined by MVR41.9 million. The stock of total government debt,…

The Maldives government has generated a quarterly total of MVR7.33 billion in Q1-2023, according to Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA). MIRA reported that the quarterly state revenue collection is a 21.4% increment compared to the same quarter in 2022, and is a 11.5% increment from initial forecast. The authority also reported that the tourist arrivals for the taxable period of Q1-2023 was 20.1% higher than the corresponding quarter in 2022, which contributed towards the revenue increase. The revenue exceeded forecast due to the increase in Goods and Services Tax (GST), Tourism Land Rent, Green Tax, and Airport Taxes and Fees…

The government has spent a cumulative total of MVR14.8 billion as of 27th April 2023, according to the Ministry of Finance. The ministry reported that the cumulative state revenues, inclusive of foreign grants reached MVR10.5 billion by the review date. Owing to higher spending compared to earnings, the overall balance for the period is a deficit of MVR4.4 billion. Revenue and Grants: 2023 | 2022 Tax Revenues: MVR7.8 billion | MVR6.7 billion Non-Tax Revenues: MVR2.6 billion | MVR2.4 billion Capital Receipts: MVR2.2 million | MVR6.6 million Grants: MVR72.8 million | MVR206.4 million Subsidiary Loan Repayment: (MVR3.1 million) | (MVR126.4 million)…

The State Trading Organization (STO) has reported an annual gross profit of MVR2.76 billion, which is a 43.8% increase from the annual gross profit of MVR1.92 billion in 2021. Financial Performance: 2022 | 2021 Gross Profit: MVR2,757,801,340 | MVR1,917,445,347 | 43.8% Operating Profit: MVR1,437,950,479 | MVR450,877,256 | 218.9% Profit Before Tax: MVR1,199,058,366 | MVR288,085,429 | 316.2% Profit After Tax: MVR1,056,861,820 | MVR185,663,749 | 469.2% Performances of STO’s Major Business Areas Fuel and Lubricant: MVR13.4 billion (observed an MVR7 billion sales growth) Trading: MVR3.04 billion (-1% decline) Fisheries: MVR1.59 billion (28% sales growth) Shipping: MVR308 million (MVR163 million sales growth) Gas:…

The Maldives has attracted over 700,000 tourist arrivals as of 05th May 2023, according to the Ministry of Tourism. The ministry reported that the total tourist arrivals as of the review date stood at 710,645, which is a 17.5% annual increment compared to the same period last year, during which arrivals stood at 604,730. Tourist arrivals to the Maldives exclusively from 01st to 05th May stood at 22,361, which is a 19.9% decline from the 27,926 arrivals recorded for the same period in 2022. However, compared to the same period in 2021, which recorded 13,534 arrivals, it is a 65%…