State Trading Organization (STO) assures uninterrupted supply of onion to the Maldives.
The largest state-owned enterprise (SOE) has made the affirmation following India’s decision to remove Maldives from the list of countries to which it extends onion export quota.
Several Indian news outlets reported that the new export quota list for onion included Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bahrain, Bhutan, and Nepal with Maldives excluded from the list.
Earlier in December 2023, India had temporarily halted all exports of onion, effective until March 2024. Despite this, through a special provision, India continued to supply onion to neighboring countries which included the Maldives as well.
Addressing to this, an official from STO assured Maldives will receive sufficient quantities of onion without hindrances, though no further details have been provided.
While India has removed the Maldives from its export quota list for onions, STO assures fast-moving perishables and food items such as potato, eggs, and onion will be readily available for local consumers during the upcoming Ramadan.