Maldives Money Authority’s (MMA) has stated that the economy of the Maldives will be revived before the end of 2023.
In a speech at the press conference held by MMA on Sunday, Governor of MMA, Ali Hashim stated that the Maldives economy was one of the many affected by the pandemic, with an estimated GDP contraction of 32 percent in 2020. He highlighted that nearly all major economic sectors; namely, tourism, construction, transport, communication and trade, all recorded negative growth numbers due to the effects of the lockdown and simultaneous border closure during the second quarter of 2020.
However, he informed that Maldives was able to quickly rebound from the “tiring and challenging” crisis they faced due to Covid-19 and affirmed that a significant improvement was seen in the performance of the tourism sector compared to the first half of 2021.
This recovery is expected to continue over the medium term and support the recovery of other sectors of the economy”Ali Hashim, Maldives Money Authority’s (MMA) Governor
Governor Hashim further stated that July 2021 was specifically a good month for tourism with arrivals surpassing 100,000 for the second month since the reopening of the borders. He expects the arrivals for August to continue to come in strongly based on the high-frequency daily tourists arrival data.
As of 21st August 2021, we have welcomed over 700,000 tourists to our shores this year, and with the peak season still ahead of us it is likely that, in the absence of further travel restrictions, total arrivals for the year will surpass one million”Ali Hashim, Maldives Money Authority’s (MMA) Governor
Furthermore, it is to be noted that MMA is closely monitoring the incoming high and low frequency macroeconomic indictors as the country progresses into the second half of 2021, said Idhuham. Moreover, he recognized that MMA were cautious of the downside risks to growth prospects due to the situation of the pandemic.
Before I conclude, I would like to reaffirm our sense of cautious optimism for the current trajectory of economic growth and recovery. I would also like to extend the assurance that we will continue to diligently monitor incoming macroeconomic and financial sector data and stand ready to make necessary adjustments to our policy instruments and intervention strategy, should the need arise.”Ali Hashim, Maldives Money Authority’s (MMA) Governor
