Minister of Finance Ibrahim Ameer, on Monday, assured that Dharumavatha Hospital would not be mortgaged or sold, even if the property's registration was transferred as part of state efforts to sell sukuk (Islamic Sharia compliant bonds) worth USD 300 million (MVR 4.6 billion).
In a letter addressed to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, Minster Ameer requested that the ownership of Dharumavantha Hospital be transferred to the finance ministry to facilitate ongoing endeavours to sell sukuk in the foreign market with the assistance of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). The capital raised from the sukuk is intended to acquire government revenue for the 2021 State Budget.
According to the finance ministry, following the creation of a 100 percent state owned Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), the beneficial ownership of a property with a value higher than 51 percent of the sukuk total would need to be transferred under the SPV. The letter stated that the 25-storey Dharumavantha Hospital, presently registered under the Ministry of Health, was the most suitable property among the current state's assets for this purpose.
Noting that the property utilised to sell sukuks must be registered under the finance ministry, Ameer requested President Solih to instruct Male' City Council to amend the registration details.
Asserting that a change of ownership was not equivalent to selling Dharumavantha Hospital, Ameer assured that the finance ministry would be the only authority with the ability to sell the property throughout the effort to sell sukuk. He added that Dharumavantha Hospital would not be mortgaged at any stage of the process.
The statement also noted government attempts to utilise the finance ministry building to sell sukuk in 2017, despite failing to do so at the time due to legal obstacles.
Additionally, the ministry highlighted that the sale of sukuk was a common practice in Islamic nations as well as other countries.
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