President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said on Wednesday that Maldives has no major obstacle in paying off its debt even though the current debt has reached over MVR 99 billion.
In a press conference held in the President's Office today, he said that even if the country in a difficult economic situation, some are politicizing the issue in ways that is far from the truth.
"The global economic difficulties will hurt Maldives' economy as well. This is something that is clear beyond any confusion," he said.
He said that some new projects have been postponed due to the current economic situation and that there are no plans to commence a major new project through additional loans at this time. He noted that due to the current economic situation, there are actions that are absolutely essential, while other projects will be initiated only after observing the changes that come to the economy. However, he said that as the funding for ongoing projects are secured, there is no difficulty in carrying them out.
The President also said that there is enough money in the usable reserve and that he is confident that it will be enough to spend until the end of this year to purchase oil, food and medicine. However, the changes in the global economy at the moment will lead to an increase the price of commodities, he said.
In response to a question by a journalist on whether the India funded Thila-Male' Bridge Project should be carried out at this time, President Solih said that he had received advice that the project should not be stopped as payments for the bridge has to be made later. The President said that with the bridge, Thilafushi Harbour will be further developed and many more will benefits will come, along with it.
Speaking after discussing the economy, President Solih said that the first 3,000 land plots to be leased from the Greater Male' Region will be announced this month as well. Announcing 5,000 new land plots in the Greater Male' Region was one of his presidential pledges.
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