President Muizzu's Comprehensive Plan To Boost Maldivian Tourism

(MENAFN- NewsIn Asia) By K

Colombo, September 28: The Mohamed Muizzu government in the Maldives has worked out a comprehensive plan to boost tourism that had suffered a serious setback due to an unofficial Indian boycott earlier this year.

The“Fifth Tourism Master Plan” (5TMP) has been developed with the help of the Asian Developed Bank.

Tourism Minister Abdulla Mausoom has said that the 5TMP sets out the vision, policy priorities, and strategies for the industry for 2023-2027. It was developed through comprehensive consultations, in-person and virtually, over some 70 meetings with industry stakeholders. Field visits were conducted in various regions.

The 5TMP examines priority areas such as business and legal environment, human resource development, environmental conservation, information and communication technology, social and cultural environment, and safety and security.

By incorporating recommendations from the UN Sustainable Development Goals and international best practices, the 5TMP's vision is to position Maldives as the world's leading destination in sustainable tourism.

In recent times, Maldivian tourism suffered two shocks, the first from COVID 19 which brought down arrivals by 67% and the unofficial Indian boycott which led to a loss of US$ 158 million early this year.

The boycott was called by Indian tour operators, Bollywood celebrities and the media, after certain steps that President Muizzu took that hurt Indian interests in the Indian Ocean archipelago. Additionally, three junior Maldivian ministers had made uncharitable remarks against Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Ibrahim H.Shihab, writing in Maldives Republic says that in 2021 291,787 tourists had arrived from India. This fell to 241,382 in 2022. In 2023, it come further down to 208,430. In 2024, up to September 24, only 88,202 had arrived, indicating a steep fall in Indian arrivals.

There upon, the Muizzu administration undertook several efforts to improve relations with India and also launched campaigns such as 'Welcome India.' But there is still a shortage of 55,000 arrivals from India, Shihab said.

Be that as it may, Maldivian tourism has been able to increase arrivals from China and Western European countries. Muizzu visited
Beijing in January and sought Chinese arrivals. .

As a result, as of September 24, 1.45 million tourists had visited the Maldives, a 10% over last year. On an average, 5,465 tourists arrived daily, with average stays recorded as 7.7 days per visitor, Shihab says. President Muizzu anticipates two million tourists this year, with an expected average annual growth rate of 10.3% in the medium term.

Current Facilities

According to the 5TMP, in 2022, there were 59,753 beds for international tourists under the“One island, One Resort” concept. There were 176 resorts across 1192 islands.

In addition to resorts there were 14,146 beds in the 874 tourist guest houses, which accounted for 28.5% of the accommodation. There were also“safari vessels” providing accommodation.

About 40% of the available accommodation was in the Kaafu atoll and the Greater Male Region. As for international air connectivity, 36 airlines connected Male with 39 places in 25 countries. Of the approximately 2 million arrivals in a year 1.7 million were on a holiday. About 25% were honeymooners.

Maldives had 556 travel agencies and 193 diving agencies, 90% being small-scale. In the food sector, there were 525 restaurants and 1550 cafes.

Tourism is the single most important source of livelihood in Maldives, accounting for 40% of the GDP. 85% of the forex earned by the country comes from tourism. In 2021, Maldives earned US$ 3.5 billion from tourism. This sector also contributed 43% of government revenue.
Tourism is also the most important area for foreign investment. In 2021, US$ 443.5 million had come as FDI in the sector.

Outlook

As per the 5TMP, Maldives is cut out for advancement. President Muizzu is hoping to double income from tourism from US$ 3.5 billion in 2021 to US$ 6 billion by 2027. The 5TMP envisages a 50-60% increase in accommodation and 25 to 40% increase international air connectivity.

Since only a fraction of the 1192 atolls are covered by tourism, the government plans to increase facilities in all atolls.

The President had announced the“Asseyri Tourism project” in Addu City, aiming to diversify and expand the tourism sector. This initiative includes the establishment of a seaplane hub in Addu City, the inauguration of 20 new resorts, and the revitalization of non-operational resorts.

The government, collaborating with various ministries and councils, is also working on completing 63 tourism development projects across different islands. Additionally, the 'Visitor Economy Council' has been established to broaden tourism services, with a focus on MICE tourism, education, culture, heritage, health, and environmental tourism.

In transportation, President Muizzu disclosed plans to construct two new airports and introduce advanced, secure helicopter services. The ongoing projects for building domestic airports are nearing completion, enhancing the country's transport infrastructure. Additionally, the national airline, Maldivian, plans to acquire two new wide-body aircraft and introduce seven new international destinations

To break the monotony of sea, sand and islets, the tourism industry is expected to increase its range of products taking care to include
Maldivian native specialities and keeping the environment safe from degradation. Net zero emission is the aim as the Maldives at is already exposed to a variety of environmental threats.

One of the important areas of development envisaged is the recruitment of highly motivated young people to opt to work in the tourism sector instead of going for desk jobs in Male. Motivational and training programmes have been recommended.

Maldives has amended the 'Regulation Governing Foreign Tourist Vessels Cruising and Harbouring in Maldivian Waters'. It stipulates that only Maldivians can serve as agents for foreign tourist vessels arriving in the country. Under the new amendment only companies with Maldivian shareholders are permitted to act as agents for foreign vessels.

President Muizzu is keen that tourism be accessible to all classes of society so that it becomes a societal commitment and movement.
Societal norms developed around tourism will greatly contribute to its development and sustainability, he believes.

Community-participation in maintaining the right environment for international tourism is a must and for this, awareness should be created and incentives given the 5TMP says.

Research, data analytics and a“whole of government” approach are urged to get accurate assessments, and ensure effective execution with the best results.

Efficient and adequate inter-island transport is another identified for development. Electric vehicles and boats are recommended to keep down pollution.

Tourism needs investment especially in far off atolls and for this incentives like tax concessions should be considered. But care should be taken to see that the desired results are attained and the foreign exchange earned is kept in the Maldives.

President Muizzu is planning to create“iconic” resorts so that the innovative spirit is instilled in investors. Among the innovations he is seeking is the use of local materials, foods, etc. Tourists could be encouraged to have local foods like tuna, reef fish, lobster, coconut, banana, water melon etc. The environment should be“Maldivian” with an abundance of coconut palms.

The atolls must be encouraged and facilitated to opt for organic agriculture and the people motivated to keep the atolls clean with, with proper sanitation. Proper water and waste management and also power management techniques must be adopted in the resorts and atolls.

Resorts should be facilitated to use solar power instead of diesel. As of now, each room, each day, uses 46 litres of diesel, which is too much.

Since tourism improvement and expansion needs funds, government should issue Treasury Bills and bonds and take steps to retain foreign exchange earned by the sector, the 5TMP says.

It should also take steps to attract tourists from the non-traditional markets like Hungary, Ireland, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, UAE and of course China, which is still not measuring up to its potential. The industry and government should also devise means to attract tourists during the off season (June to September), the 5TMP said.

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