Serious allegations have surfaced that the process of selecting winners at the Maldives Expo 2025 may have been rigged.

Speaking to RaajjeMV, some participants of the exhibition revealed that the awards at the exhibition featuring the creativity of local businesses, were not chosen fairly and that the awards were “sold”. In addition to showcasing a wide variety of food products, the expo also featured an awards segment recognizing select entries.

A young exhibitor who sold ice cream at the event expressed concerns about unfair treatment among participants, claiming that important information was not being shared fairly. He also questioned the integrity of the awards process, stating that his ice cream was never tasted and asking how awards could be judged without sampling all entries.

A young exhibitor from Thulhaadhoo also raised concerns about fairness in the handicrafts category, stating that the award decisions appeared arbitrary and lacked transparency. He claimed that first place was awarded to an association from L. Fonadhoo for a two-foot lacquered vase, which, according to him, was actually crafted by a Thulhaadhoo artisan who had been paid to produce it. Meanwhile, Thulhaadhoo’s own submissions, a five-foot lacquered vase and a five-foot four-inch piece, received less recognition, with the latter only securing second place.

Given that this is the Maldives Expo 2025, exhibitors questioned to what extent the originality of the products was verified.

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu presented gold awards to those who won first place in multiple categories at the Maldives Expo 2025 and to the top five participants who scored the highest marks overall in the expo.

A total of 275 awards were chosen and presented. A total of 383 participants took part in the Maldives Expo 2025. This was across 14 categories and 82 sub-categories.

The highest number of participants was in the handicrafts sector. Many islands from Haa Dhaalu Atoll to Laamu Atoll participated in the exhibition. The capital, Malé City and B. Thulhaadhoo had the highest number of entries in the exhibition. Over 3,600 items were registered through application forms for participation in the exhibition.

Inaugurated as a platform to promote business innovation and creativity, the exhibition aims to boost productivity and support business growth in the Maldives. Running from May 23 to May 31, the event officially opened to the public on Friday night at 8:30pm.

The exhibition is jointly organized by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade in collaboration with the Business Center Corporation (BCC).