Ministry of Higher Education has begun transferring the loans taken by students of the Asian Academy of Aeronautics (AAA). In this regard, loans taken from the Bank of Maldives (BML) by 15 students have been transferred to the higher education ministry.
President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih made the decision to transfer the loans to the higher education ministry to prevent interest from being charged on the loans. After the transfer, the ministry will not be charging interest for the loans. Students can begin repaying the loans six months after the completion of their education, stated the ministry.
The government has previously also extended the repayment period of the loans taken by 96 students of the flying school to six months after the completion of their course.
AAA has come under scrutiny after a majority of its students raised concerns such as its failure to complete its programmes for students as scheduled, overcharging fees, and challenges in logging their flight time due to the lack of teachers and planes for the over 170 students studying at the school. The complaints led to a parliament inquiry which found that AAA does not have sufficient resources and facilities to conduct its programmes.
The national airline operator, Island Aviation Service Limited (IASL), is currently seeking experienced parties to operate a new flying school, which is to be run independently by a subsidiary company.