Maldives government has secured a loan of USD54.9 million (MVR844 million) from a foreign private investor for budget support.
Though the Ministry of Finance said that the state will be acquiring the loan from a private party, it did not disclose details of the investor.
The government had earlier secured a loan of USD34 million (MVR520 million) from International Development Association (IDA) in June 2023. The state’s foreign debt for the current year has now reached USD117 million.
The state budget for 2023 is USD 2.8 billion with an annual budget deficit of USD 933 million. To address this deficit before 2023 closes, the state is required to generate revenue from treasury bills issuance or by securing loans.
Additionally, the state set out an annual allocation of USD 155.6 million receivable in foreign grants, of which only 8%, equivalent to USD13.9 million, has been received so far. The remaining 91% of the budgeted total is still pending acquisition by the state.
Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) continues to print money as the government maintains a consistent funds acquisition for its state budget via treasury bills and loans. During July, the central bank generated MVR 1.1 billion (USD71 million) through this process.
While the government has paid USD90.8 million to settle its debts in 2023, it is required to pay USD136.2 million for the outstanding debts this year.
