A total of US$600 million was secured by the government on its recent state visit to India, according to the foreign minister Ahmed Shaheed (pic). He has described the trip as “eminently successful”.
In addition to the original US$100 million pledged by India, Shaheed said he was “almost certain” the government would be given a US$300 million loan from the State Bank of India in the Maldives.
A further loan for traders had been obtained from the Export-Import Bank of India, he said, while government officials had also met with “captains of industry” who were keen to invest in the Maldives.
“So if we look at all this, we are looking at a very practical injection of US$600 million."
Regarding the US$100 million, the foreign minister signed a bilateral agreement for the amount. He added the sum would be “dispensed shortly”.
Shaheed said half of this loan was interest-free while the other half had a “very very low” interest rate of 1.5 per cent.
One of the provisions of the credit was that half of the money should be spent on imports from India. The remainder, said Shaheed, was for the government to spend as it pleased.
According to Shaheed, President Mohamed Nasheed had informed those who had travelled with him to India that the money should be used “to set the bills in order”.
“Plugging the budget deficit is a top priority,” said Shaheed. “And this will ease the dollar shortage.”
The loan comes at a time of great financial difficulty for the Maldives, which currently has a budget deficit of Rf1.4 billion.
Fazeel Najeeb, governor of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) recently confirmed the bank had loaned the government Rf203 million to offset the huge deficit which they had inherited from the previous administration.
The money, said Shaheed, would go towards this three-month loan.
Following the trip, the foreign minister was very optimistic about the future economy of the country. “In 18 months, we should be looking at a very rosy picture,” he said.
President Nasheed made the administration’s first state visit to India this month.
During his three-day trip, he met a host of dignitaries including the Indian President Shrimathi Pratibham Devesingh Patil, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Shrimathi Sonia Gandhi, president of the Indian National Congress.
Besides securing much-needed funds, the Maldives foreign minister said the visit to India by the Maldives president was made to “celebrate our democratic credentials”.
I think we Maldivians (all of us) should thank India for helping us this substantially at a time for terrible economic woes for us. A friend in need is a friend indeed!
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteI am a journalist from Poland, (the Axel Springer daily newspaper "Dziennik", www.dziennik.pl) and I'm currently working on an article about Maldives and the global warming, which may cause the ocean level to rise (in the near future) dangerously high for the Maledives' sheer existence.
I would like to ask You, as someone who lives there, are you afraid that in the next couple of years the Maldivians will be forced to leave their homes? Can You imagine moving to another terrritory, or buying another territory from India or Australia as your President proposed? And living there and still feel a Maldivian?
The second question may sound obvious for Maledivian inhabitant, but as it's pretty far from Poland, it's a useful info for the readers: how does a tide look in Maldives? How big part of the land gets covered by water, and how big are the damages? I know that after the last tsunami the main island was circled with a concrete bulwark, but what about the rest of them?
And finally - how does a usual Maldivian see his future if the islands might be doomed? And the future of the next generation?
If possible, please reply soon:)
all the best from Poland,
Michael Gostkiewicz
www.dziennik.pl
Thank God India waited to give this money to the new government. If it was given to Gayoom, he would have ordered a new fleet of bullet proof cars, hired more gurukas to protect him and helped Pakistan to smuggle more weapons to create havoc in Indian cities. Current government will remain transparent and will create unlimited opportunities for Indian businessmen to invest in the islands. Thank you, India, you saved our day.
ReplyDeleteMichael,
ReplyDeleteWe are the victims of greed and ignorance of the west. The people of Maldives really have no choice, but to hope for the best and to pray that our islands will remain safe.
However, the people are responsible enough to find an alternative. Perhaps we will call upon President Barak Obama or Australian PM Philip Maxwell Ruddock to accommodate us, so that we can leave the islands and hand over the keys to them.
Though President Nasheed hinted that he may purchase land in India or Sri Lanka, those are the last choices of the people of Maldives, not because we hate them, but because the global warming is not caused by them, but instead by the parties who had earlier refused to sign the Kyoto protocol.
I hope Dr. Shaheed will keep an eye on Kerafa Naseem, who was Yaameen's buddy and known internationally as Mr. Twenty Percent (20%). During his time at Ministry of Trade in charge of foreign investment, no body invested in the Maldives instead of couple of Sri Lankans brought in some garment factories, which all went broke, because he demanded too much commissions. His recent visit to Australia and his comments that we can conduct tuna farming shows his naiveness. He is a "smooth operator" and a habitual drinker.
ReplyDeleteDr. Shaheed also must keep Ibrahim Hussein Zaki at bay, because they will become like Fathuhullah Jameel, who traveled all 30 years looking for assistance for himself and partners to his resort. Zaki can travel to the islands as Anni's envoy and keep him away from booze.
Ambassador Maniku must be replaced as they are investment partners with Yameen and will continue to find funding for DRP, while having a holiday in America.
good thinking
ReplyDeleteYeah replace Ambassador Manik with Makun Falah...
ReplyDelete