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Maldives abolishes tax on sanitary products

29 November 2018, MVT 14:31
A popular picture used for the #MassaruTax campaign. PHOTO: SOCIAL MEDIA
29 November 2018, MVT 14:31

The parliament, on Wednesday, unanimously agreed to abolish the 6 percent tax on menstrual products.

All 68 parliamentarians voted in favour of amending the Goods and Services Tax Bill to categorize pads, tampons and other sanitary products as necessities.

In addition to speaking on behalf of the amendment, several parliamentarians who debated on the issue, insisted on government monitoring of retailers to ensure that menstrual products are sold at cheaper prices in the future.

The amendment was proposed on Monday by Kurendhoo MP Abdul Baaree Rasheed.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih pledged to cancel all such duties prior to his election. The administration previously announced that they would accomplish this within the first 100 days of its leadership.

There has been increasing political awareness regarding period poverty among locals, owing greatly to a popular Twitter movement launched in 2016 under the hashtag #MassaruTax.

Several other nations also abolished the tampon tax earlier this year. India abolished their 12 percent tax on sanitary products in July while Colombia scrapped their 5 percent tax earlier this month. Australia approved the decision to slash taxes in October.

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