Law to be amended to ban online gambling

Attorney General Ahmed Usham has said that amendments will be brought to the laws to set in place a ban on online betting or gambling.

In a press conference held at the President's Office, Usham said that it has been noticed that there is a rising issue of online gambling in the country. He said that this is an issue that needs addressing through laws.

"We will bring the necessary amendments to the law to ban this," he said.

Last July, the government began efforts to block access to online betting websites in the country.

Communication Authority of Maldives (CAM) has said that the websites which were regularly used for online betting have been blocked with assistance from Police. However, the number of websites blocked was not disclosed.

In addition to websites, online betting via Telegram groups and social media platforms have also become common in the country.