The Elections Commission of the Maldives (ECM) has requested the Ministry of Finance to release state funds for two political parties.
The Political Parties Act states 0.01% of the state budget should be distributed to registered political parties with 10,000 or more members. Four parties are eligible for state funds, which are the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM), Jumhooree Party (JP), and Adhaalath Party (AP). As such, MDP has 54,660 members, PPM has 34,237 members, JP has 20,107 members and AP has 10,554 members.
Secretary-General of ECM Hassan Zakariya said the ECM each year requests the finance ministry to release funds for the eligible parties who have submitted their yearly and audit reports. He said the ECM has requested the finance ministry to release funds for PPM and JP, as they have submitted their reports, adding that AP has also recently submitted their reports and that the electoral body will request their funds to be released as well, while MDP is expected to submit their reports soon.
MDP will receive USD972,000 in state funds while PPM will receive USD609,000, JP will receive USD356,000, and AP will receive USD188,000.
The Maldives consists of 11 registered political parties, with most being below 10,000 membership.