Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed has stated that the country’s economy is showing signs of improvement and is projected to grow by 6.4% this year. Speaking at a press conference held by the President’s Office, Saeed said that despite some parties claiming the economy is not progressing, it is indeed moving forward.
“If the projected figure is 6.4%, then we measure it quarterly. It is expected to grow,” Saeed said.
While Saeed made these remarks, the Deputy Speaker of the People’s Majlis, Ahmed Nazim, said yesterday that there are no visible signs of economic improvement or reduction in government expenditure. Minister Saeed said he had no comment on these concerns. Gasim Ibrahim, the chair of the Parliament’s Public Finance Committee, has also expressed concerns about the country’s economic situation. He stated that the country’s condition needs to be explained and that the economy will only improve if changes are made to the government’s format.
According to MIRA statistics, the total revenue collected in January this year was 3.34 billion rufiyaa. This is 7.7% lower than the revenue collected during the same period last year. Journalists at today’s press conference also noted that according to Finance Ministry statistics, state revenue has decreased by 19% over the past month.
In his presidential address at the opening of this year’s Parliament session, President Dr. Muizzu stated that reducing the budget deficit to 9.4 billion rufiyaa this year is a goal. The President said that measures taken to increase state revenue to overcome the economic difficulties facing the Maldives have begun to positively impact the state treasury and foreign currency reserves.
