Author: Mohamed Reehaan

Abdulla Faaiz has been appointed chairman of the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC). Faaiz brings more than 30 years of experience across business and tourism. He previously served as chairman of the Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) and the State Trading Organization (STO). He has also held the posts of managing director at ADK Trade and Shipping, director to the chairman at Villa Shipping and Trading, and director of marketing and promotions at Villa Hotels. Moreover, Faaiz is a founding member of the Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MNCCI), the Maldives Traders Association, MNACI, and the Restaurant…

The head of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development called on President Dr Mohamed Muizzu on Wednesday morning, with the commercial agenda pointed squarely at the Maldives’ tourism industry. Sheikh Yousef Hassan Khalawi, the ICCD’s secretary-general, met the President at the President’s Office. Talks focused on build up the Islamic economy: capacity building, investment, and joint work in hospitality and halal business. Halal tourism, and how to expand it, featured in the discussion. Resorts here have long sold sun and seclusion to European and Chinese travelers, and in a country where tourism drives the economy and dollar earnings, a…

The Maldivian government has raised transfers to local councils by 15.8 percent, according to the Finance Ministry’s latest weekly fiscal report, in one of the sharpest increases across the state’s recurrent spending. Councils have drawn MVR 1.66 billion (USD 108 million) so far this year. That figure sits MVR 227.2 million (USD 15 million) above the same point in 2025. The Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises publishes the Weekly Fiscal Development report, which tracks spending and revenue against the previous year. Salaries and allowances remain the single largest recurrent line. The government has spent MVR 9.39 billion (USD 609…

Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu has called for closer economic cooperation with Malaysia, casting five decades of diplomatic relations as a foundation for trade, investment and business links between the two countries. Muizzu set out the pitch in separate messages to Malaysia’s King Sultan Ibrahim and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, sent to mark Malaysia’s Independence Day. In his message to the king, Muizzu said the two countries had held warm relations for 50 years, resting on friendship, mutual respect and cooperation. He committed to widening that cooperation and delivering returns for people in both countries. His message to Anwar leaned harder…

Abdulla Yaasir has taken over as chief executive and managing director of Visit Maldives Corporation (VMC). The appointment took effect on Wednesday. Yaasir brings more than 25 years in tourism, hospitality, corporate management and destination development. He entered the industry in 1993. He has run resorts as general manager and served as a director of One&Only Kanuhura. Since 2010 he has led Supersupply and Watermark as managing director. He also chairs the Entrepreneurs Association of Maldives. He studied at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom. He holds a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and tourism business management and a…

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu says the government has made engineering and science education a special priority. He set out the case on PSM’s Nation Chat programme. The President designated 30 August as Engineers’ Day last year. The date marks the opening of the Sinamalé Bridge on 30 August 2018. President Muizzu said the country needs a day that recognizes engineers and the work they do. He also called for wider awareness of the field among young people. He point to a gap in the numbers. Too few students in higher education pick science, mathematics and engineering, he said. Far more…

The Maldives and India have opened talks on closer work in the environment sector. Climate Change, Environment and Energy Minister Ali Shareef met India’s Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav in Ulaabaatar. Ahmed Shaan, Director of Knowledge Management, Research and Assessment, joined the Maldivian side. Both ministers traveled to Mongolia for the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. The two sides used the meeting to restate the closeness of the bilateral relationship. They then turned to Maldives-India environmental cooperation and atmospheric science. The talks covered concrete ground. The two countries examined joint…

The People’s Majlis (Maldives Parliament) passed the government’s amendments to the Foreign Currency Act on Wednesday. Members voted 47 in favor and 12 against. The vote covered the bill as the committee revised it. Holhudhoo MP Abdul Sattar Mohamed introduced the bill on the government’s behalf. The government said it wanted to review the criteria that decide which businesses must bank their foreign currency earnings and which must exchange them. It also wanted firmer rules on how Category A establishments convert foreign currency. The foreign currency law amendments require two groups to deposit foreign currency income into a bank account.…

Maldives Ports Limited will begin construction this month on a yacht marina at Uligam in Haa Alif Atoll, a facility the government expects to turn the northernmost inhabited island into a docking point for recreational and commercial vessels entering the country. Economic Development and Trade Minister Mohamed Saeed said in a social media post that the marina would make Uligam and the wider northern region a hub for such traffic. The facility will offer convenient, safe and straightforward port services, he said. Uligam already serves as a first stop for yachts sailing into the Maldives from abroad. Large numbers dock…

The Maldives Monetary Authority has opened investigations into money changers after finding that businesses earning large sums in foreign currency are moving dollars through the black market, Governor Ahmed Munnawar said. Munnawar, speaking to reporters at the President’s Office, said black market activity had grown sharply over the past month. The conflict in the Middle East briefly disrupted the dollar market, he said, but did not justify a parallel market of the current size. The central bank is now running monitoring operations aimed at money changers. Work carried out with enforcement agencies identified companies with substantial foreign currency earnings channeling…