Author: Mohamed Reehaan

British Airways will reportedly be commencing regular scheduled flights to the Maldives in 2023. This marks the first time, the seasonal carrier to the Maldives will be launching regular direct flights operations. Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) stated that British Airways next year will commence the flights. UK’s flagship carrier is gearing to launch direct flights throughout the year to Maldives at a time when the country’s tourism market has become strong. So far in 2022, UK ranked third in terms of tourist arrivals, with a market share of 10.8% with over 170,000 arrivals.

Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has concluded his two-day official visit to three islands of southern Gaaf Alif atoll on Saturday, 24th December and returned to Male’ City. During his trip, President Solih visited Dhaandhoo, Nilandhoo and Maamendhoo. President Solih attended the ceremony held to mark the completion of the land reclamation project in GA. Dhaandhoo. The project saw the addition of 25 hectares of land to the island, completed by Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC). The Maldives head of state also attended the official inauguration of new powerhouses developed on the islands of Nilandhoo and Maamendhoo. The new…

Local telecommunication, internet services and IPTV services provider Dhiraagu confirms it will be discontinuing both its DhiraaguTV and DhiraaguPlay services. Dhiraagu confirmed its rebroadcasting license will expire on 29 January 2023, after which its DhiraaguTV services will no longer be provided. Meanwhile, their application to renew the license was rejected by Maldives Broadcasting Commission (MBC) in accordance with the Rebroadcasting Regulations’ amendment, which introduced a provision prohibiting companies with foreign shareholders from providing rebroadcasting services in the Maldives. Dhiraagu has attempted on various occasions to resolve the matter and continue its DhiraaguTV and DhiraaguPlay services in a fair and sustainable…

Karl Stumke, the newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Maldives (BML) has also been appointed as the bank’s Managing Director. Maldives Privatization and Corporatization Board (PCB) on Wednesday confirmed the bank’s board of directors decided to appoint Stumke as the bank’s new MD. He was earlier appointed as the bank’s new CEO following Tim Sawyer’s exit from the role. Karl Stumke brings over 36 years of experience leading retail and corporate banks at executive and board levels in the Middle East, Africa, Indian Oceans and United Kingdom. He was previously CEO of Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait in…

Thailand’s Onyx Hospitality Group will be opening its second Maldivian property under its luxury Amari brand next year. According to travel updates, the group’s next property, Amari Raaya Maldives is expected to debut during the first quarter of 2023. The 200-villa private island resort is situated in Raa atoll, northwest of Male’ City. The property features seven dining concepts, a Maai Spa and a kids club. Moreover, the new property’s planned launch aligns with Onyx’s vision to operate 54 international properties by 2025. Currently the group operates 44 worldwide properties, with 10 already in development. Commenting on the group’s vision,…

Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) has hosted the “Port Safety Forum” under its ongoing “Port Safety Week 2022”. The Port Safety Week kicked off on 19 December, while the safety forum was held on 21 December at the seminar hall of Social Center. The forum aimed to provide a platform to discuss health and safety objectives with MPL departments and industry stakeholders, understand current obstacles or hindrances and exchange ideas for resolution. MPL board members, department heads, representatives from Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF), Maldives Police Service and Maldives Customs Service along with Port Health officials participated in the discussions. Speaking…

According to Ministry of Finance, state’s cumulative earnings so far in 2022 reached MVR25.5 billion, as of 15 December 2022. On the other hand, state expenditure in annual terms reached MVR36.2 billion by the review date. The overall balance for the period is a deficit of MVR10.7 billion. By the review date, the cumulative total of tax revenues reached MVR18.2 billion. By the corresponding period in 2021, the amount had reached MVR13.5 billion, indicating healthier state earnings this year. Moreover, the cumulative total of non-tax revenues by the review date reached MVR7.1 billion, whereas for the same period last year…

Maldives Vice President Faisal Naseem on Tuesday, 21 December, stressed on the need to adopt new technologies to reduce fossil fuel dependency. He made the remarks while speaking at the ceremony held to mark the 73rd anniversary of initiating electricity as a utility service in the Maldives. According to Maldives Vice President, electricity has become essential for daily livelihood, and noted the instabilities facing international markets due to Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war, which resulted in price bumps on fuel, increasing consumer woes. At the ceremony, he praised State Electric Company (STELCO) for investing in renewable energy sources and…

Maldives welcomed the country’s 1.6 millionth tourist on Tuesday, 20 December 2022. Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) and Maldives government celebrated the state’s visitor target achievement. Earlier, Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih declared the tourist arrivals target, set at 1.6 million before 2022 ended. On Tuesday, Tejas Sanjay Kothari, arriving from India for his honeymoon, became the 1.6 millionth guest arriving in Maldives in 2022. Tejas, along with his newlywed wife flew in from Air Vistara Flight no. UK271. Upon arrival, Tejas was conferred with special gifts on behalf of MMPRC, Ministry of Tourism and other stakeholders. He…

State Electric Company (STELCO) has announced it plans to launch scholarship opportunities for two higher secondary graduates. STELCO Managing Director Ahmed Shareef, made the announcement while speaking at the commemoration ceremony marking the corporation’s 73rd anniversary. At the ceremony, Shareef noted the importance of capacity and personnel development. He also stressed on the need to train future energy industry professionals. Moreover, the STELCO front man confirmed the corporation spent MVR7 million each year of staff training and development. Primary objective of these training and capacity development involve creating more industry professionals. While the utility provider is celebrating 73 years of…