The Maldives National Association of Construction Industry (MNACI) has expressed concerns over pending payments for completed state-initiated projects, leading to increased worries among construction contractors.
MNACI said that many contractors fund the execution of projects out of their own resources and bill the government after completing project components. However, delays in payments from the government have significantly impacted these contractors, leading to difficulties in the operations of private companies and paying wages and salaries to employees and settling payments to suppliers.
The association emphasized that the delays in payments from the state have resulted in many companies becoming non-functional, as laborers have had to stop their work due to financial constraints. Despite multiple appeals to the government to address the issue, there has been no resolution, according to MNACI.
MNACI also called out to the government to pay compensation to contractors for delays on the state's part in the same manner it fined contractors for delays in project completion.
While MNACI has raised the issue, it was recently revealed that Fenaka Corporation owed payments to over 100 contractors for projects the company initiated.
The government has allocated MVR 8.2 billion for the Public Sector Investment Program (PSIP) in 2023, with a specific focus on urban development in the atolls. There are over 900 projects worth MVR 8.4 billion planned for this year under the PSIP.
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