Minister of Finance and Treasury Ahmed Munawwar has revealed that sovereign guarantees were mostly given to housing schemes such as “Hiyaa” during President Abdulla Yameen’s administration.

Speaking at the committee meeting held on Wednesday to discuss the proposed state budget for 2019, Minister Munawwar stated that sovereign guarantees were mostly given to state institutions and companies, excluding one from the private sector.

Minister Munawwar also said that the state had given sovereign guarantees for the government schemes which were carried out for the benefit of the people. As such, the State Trading Organization (STO) was also given a sovereign guarantee to bring efficient changes to the price of oil.

It was also revealed in the proposed budget that the state will be selling sovereign bonds of USD 150 million in 2019.

While the Maldives first sold bonds in 2017 where a total of USD 200 million had been sold, 2019 will be the third consecutive year of selling them. A total of USD 250 million was sold in 2018.

The Ministry’s statistics have also shown a significant rise in foreign debt, which has reached up to 70 percent this year in comparison to 2017.