President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has said that islands have been earmarked for the development of 10 resorts under his pledge to create Maldivian shareholders in resorts. He said the work is progressing rapidly.
Speaking to journalists at the President’s Office, President Muizzu said that enabling Maldivians to become stakeholders in the tourism industry, without creating a situation where only a particular group becomes wealthy from the sector, was one of the best approaches.
He said it was therefore decided to develop 10 resorts, and announced that the work was progressing rapidly.
“Where we have reached now is that we are identifying lagoons and islands in Male' Atoll and other atolls. We intend to complete that work this week and then proceed with the remaining work. Hopefully, some of the work will begin during November,” the President said.
President Muizzu said the Government was working to complete the process of making Maldivians shareholders in the 10 resorts within 36 months, so that the benefits could be made available to the public.
Speaking at this year’s opening sitting of the Parliament, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu said that Maldivians were the true owners of the Maldives’ natural assets. He said he believed establishing a systematic mechanism through which citizens could receive direct income from those assets was the fairest approach.
Accordingly, the Government has announced plans to develop at least 10 resorts within three years and distribute a significant portion of the profits generated by those resorts directly to the bank accounts of every Maldivian citizen, without leaving anyone behind, through an annual payment in foreign currency.
The Government has also said that legislation will determine the shareholding that each citizen will hold in all resorts developed under the project. It estimates that the project will begin generating clear profits by 2030.