President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih announced on Wednesday that the state will defer student loan payments for a period of six months due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking at a press conference held on Wednesday evening, the President said that the student loan scheme would still be in place although payments will be deferred.
According to President Solih there are over 4,000 students who are currently repaying their loans.
Minister of Higher Education Dr Ibrahim Hassan told local media Mihaaru that this decision is proof that the government understands the challenges faced by those who completed their studies through the loan scheme. Therefore, he stated that this step was taken in hopes of finding an easier alternative for those students.
In addition to this, the state is also providing the opportunity to postpone payments for loans issues from Bank of Maldives (BML) for a period of six months, with an additional six months to the loan duration to make the repayments.