Tag: maldives news

Government inviting foreigners to usurp Maldivian businesses, claims MP Muttalib

A business registration bill proposed by the government as part of its economic reform package is “a deceptive ploy” to “open up the country to foreigners”, warns MP Ibrahim Muttalib.

During today’s parliamentary debate, the Jumhooree Party (JP) MP argued that provisions in the legislation allowing foreign businesses to establish branches in the Maldives and requiring at least US$1 million as capital “proves that this bill was drafted to allow foreigners to easily do business in the Maldives.”

“Under this law, a person with US$1 million would be able to easily register a business in this country,” he explained. “Considering the state of the Maldivian people, there won’t be any businessman who has US$1 million at hand. [Foreign businesses] will be able to conduct wholesale business and sell day-to-day necessities.”

Muttalib added that local businesses that trade in footwear and garments “would not have US$1 million, except for a very few people.”

He urged MPs to consider the consequence of foreign businesses entering the footwear, garment and wholesale industry: “What is being done today is part of a neighbouring country’s efforts to open up this country for its citizens,” he said.

“The Indian government proposed opening up the service industry, tourism, travel agencies, construction, health industry, social security, financial industry, maritime travel, air travel and airplane repair under a SAFTA [South Asian Free Trade Association] agreement,” he claimed. “But because all our local industries opposed it the government has decided to do it under a law.”

While the bill specified businesses that could not be conducted by expatriates – such as fisheries, agriculture and selling commodities out of a private residence – all other kinds of businesses were “opened to foreigners” under the proposed law.

“Honourable Speaker, I do not want to live in this country as a third-class citizen,” he said.

Foreign businesses understood that a relatively small amount of capital was enough to “easily bribe officials” and secure investments such as uninhabited islands, Muttalib claimed.

According to the draft legislation, the purpose of the bill is to ensure that businesses, partnerships and cooperative societies operating in the Maldives are registered; specify what kind of businesses must be registered along with procedures for registration; and oblige businesses to submit information to the Registrar of Businesses.

MP Abdulla Mausoom of the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) meanwhile expressed concern that allowing foreign businesses to establish branches in the Maldives could pose challenges to local industries.

Mausoom argued that the US$1 million stipulated as a minimum capital investment for foreign businesses was too low: “All around us, whether it’s India, Celyon [Sri Lanka], Singapore, Malaysia or Africa, are looking at the Maldives; [because] their countries are saturated they are ready to do business in Maldives.

“If we open up too easily like this, [foreign] businesses will pose serious challenges to our small businesses,” he said, suggesting more restrictions to protect local industries.

MP “Reeko” Moosa Manik, acting chairperson of the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), noted that there were numerous unregistered businesses operating in the Maldives by foreign parties.

“In the woods in some islands, especially [Laamu Atoll], there’s even an immigration department,” he said, adding that he has learned of work visas approved for ten people under the name of one person. “There’s no particular business done by these people, in sum they’re involved in all business.”

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BML records 40 percent increase in half-yearly profits

The Bank of Maldives (BML) has recorded a significant increase in operating profits of almost 40 percent in the first half of 2011, according to half-yearly results released yesterday.

Notably, the bank’s operating profits for the second quarter of 2011 were Rf 132,201,055 (US$8.57 million) in the second quarter of 2011 compared to Rf 79,872,266 (US$5.17 million) for the same period in 2010.

BML said in a statement that the total profits would be allocated to cover loan loss provisions in the second quarter of 2011. The bank will also not issue dividends to shareholders this year.

The bank also announced the launch of a business transformation programme that will see it evolve into a financial services institution “with a stronger focus on customers and service provision”.

International human resource consultancy firm Hunter Roberts, which has worked with major UK banks including Barclays, had been appointed to develop effective employee policies and provide staff development, BML said.

Speaking to Minivan News in April following his appointment, BML’s new CEO Peter Horton identified service provision as a particular area of improvement for the bank.

“I think this business grew very rapidly, not just the loan base but in terms of customers, especially if you look at what BML was 10 years ago,” he said at the time.

“That goes some way to explaining why we have such big queues in the banking hall. When I came out for my interview I took the time to walk around Male’ several times – and go in very incognito to see the BML branch. I have to experience what the customer experiences, and I don’t think that experience is what any of us want.”

Horton spent 15 years with Barclays in the UK before moving to Africa to run the bank’s corporate turnaround teams, where he became experienced in dealing with distressed portfolios and problem lending. Speaking to Minivan News in April, he identified BML’s high non-performing loan problem as a key impediment to the bank’s performance, noting that it not only had a carrying cost “but it also creates a certain mood around the business internally and externally.”

Horton also worked in the offshore finance field with a subsidiary of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in the Bahamas, and has championed the potential for the Maldives to develop an offshore finance sector.

“If you look at the world’s emerging economies, which are moving West to East, our proximity to India and to a lesser extent Sri Lanka, and with direct flights to most South-East Asian cities, should be a huge advantage for us,” he told Minivan News.

“The majority of offshore banking centres do rely on imported people and institutions. They are truly migratory these days. We are in a global economy now where things move overnight, so if you were able to do the things to attract people, it is very, very doable.

“The other thing is having sufficient protection around the business – having a strong regulator, a strong legal system, and probably some degree of monetary protection. If a private bank is bringing dollars into the country, there needs to be some degree of certainty that the dollars can sit in the country quite safely,” he said.

The Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) has meanwhile announced a 13 percent increase in bank profit taxes collected in 2010 revenue. The country’s six banks paid Rf 226 million (US$14.65 million) in taxes, it said.

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President extends Ramadan greetings as Holy month begins

President Mohamed Nasheed has extended Ramadan greetings as the Holy month begins in the Maldives.

In a statement, President Nasheed emphasised that Ramadan was an occasion for good deeds and helping the less fortunate.

Nasheed also sent Ramadan greetings to the leaders of other Islamic countries.

During the month of Ramadan the pace of life in Male’ slows and the capital’s vibrant cafe culture shifts to the evening, after sunset, while the population fasts during the day.

Government offices close at 1:30pm during Ramadan, rather than 4:00pm, and the Islamic Ministry holds special religious sermons every day. Foreigners are requested to respect the custom and refrain from eating or drinking in public before sunset.

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Tourism boost from Baa Atoll’s UNESCO status a management challenge

The designation of Baa Atoll as a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve is a significant achievement for the Maldives but makes proper management all the more imperative, government organisations and environmental NGOs have said.

Baa Atoll was last month added to the UN body’s global list of biosphere reserves, placing it in the company of world famous sites such as the Komodo in Indonesia, Uluru (Ayer’s Rock) in Australia and the Galapagos Islands.

The listing recognises “where local communities are actively involved in governance and management, research, education, training and monitoring at the service of both socio-economic development and biodiversity conservation,” UNESCO said in a statement.

It has also prompted a surge of tourism interest in Baa Atoll, requiring local bodies to balance the impact and sustainability objectives of the biosphere with the new income.

Director of the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) Ibrahim Naeem said it took five years of lobbying for Baa Atoll to become the first globally recognised biosphere in the Maldives.

“The whole atoll has been zoned into three categories, limiting activities conducted there,” he explained.

‘Core areas’ account for 10 percent of the atoll with no extraction activities permitted – “look and see only”, Naeem explained. Buffer areas limit some activities while transitional areas allow most activities if conducted in a sustainable fashion.

Exceptionally unique areas, such as Hanifaru Bay, have a management plan to limit access, Naeem explained: “We allow resorts and safari boats to visit Hanifaru Bay on alternate days to avoid conflicts,” he said, adding that the EPA had appointed a ranger to monitor vessels in the area and was training several more to cover the rest of the atoll.

At the beginning of the process many locals expressed reluctance about the atoll being designated a biosphere, fearing that their traditional fishing areas would be restricted, he acknowledged.

That concern still exists, says Ahmed Ikram, Director of Environmental NGO Bluepeace.

“Local divers and other groups are concerned that these places will become so protected and so exclusive that locals will be unable to access them,” he said. “We have started to hear concerns that these sites will be cordoned off to the public, with access controlled by resorts and limited access for independent dive companies and safaris.”

Local people needed to be trained as rangers, guides and attendants, and NGOs, island womens’ committees and fishermen needed to be involved in decision-making, Ikram said.

“The EPA has handed the management to the Baa Atoll council, but without any capacity building,” he claimed, while resorts sponsored “greenwashing” campaigns to fulfill their corporate social responsibility objectives, protecting their house reefs and excluding local communities.

“The reefs around resorts are some of the most protected in the Maldives. Why are the house reefs of local islands not being protected too?” Ikram asked.

In some cases tourism authorities had failed to take into account traditional bait fishing grounds when leasing islands for resort development.

“If they fall in the vicinity [of the resort] the fishermen will still go there to fish, as they have done so for thousands of years – it would quickly become a national issue if they were stopped,” he said, adding that climate change had also affected many of these areas forcing fishermen to harvest bait elsewhere.

“Already in some areas climate change has meant that fishermen are having to dive 40 metres to get bait,” Ikram said. “We need to remember than man is part of the ecosystem.”

Deputy Environment Minister Mohamed Shareef told Minivan News that the Baa Atoll management scheme would include the creation of revenue mechanism for the community whereby, for example, “one dollar from each dive goes to fund the needs of the local community.”

The management process, he said, was participatory, and for the locals, “absolutely nothing has changed. Local fishing practices and the manner of living is very sustainable, from knowledge generated over many years.”

Baa Atoll is home to 12,000 people distributed across 13 populated islands and six resorts. The atoll is one of the most biodiverse in the Maldives with high concentrations of manta rays, whale sharks and turtles, and a number of species of coral and sea slugs unique to the area.

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Release of inmates will be gradual and supervised, says Zuhair

The impending release of close to 400 convicts announced by President Mohamed Nasheed on Independence Day will be “a gradual and supervised process,” Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair has said.

Zuhair explained that a coordinated effort involving the Home Ministry, Health Ministry and the Department of Penitentiary and Rehabilitation Services (DPRS) was currently ongoing.

“[The process] will be divided into phases. All 400 convicts won’t be released at once,” he said.

Zuhair added that the release would be the culmination of months of “an integrated effort” by the concerned authorities to categorise and interview inmates.

“The government has not decided to do this all of a sudden,” he said. “The screening process has been going on for months.”

The interviewing and evaluation process was still ongoing, he continued, and inmates were being categorised to determine whether they needed to enter a rehabilitation programme or other training programmes.

Inmates are to be granted jobs in government companies with a minimum Rf2,000 salary (US$130).

In some cases, said Zuhair, there were “legal complications” caused by some convicts serving multiple sentences.

Zuhair stressed that the inmates would have their “sentences suspended” for a period of three years, during which they would immediately be returned to jail if they were found to have committed any kind of offence.

He added that the released convicts would be subject to “monitoring and constant supervision by the government.”

The authorities are currently engaged in securing job placements and finalising the rehabilitation programmes, he said.

On fears of the released convicts contributing to a rise in crime during Ramadan, Zuhair argued that the government had a “proven track record” with its previous programmes.

Out of 119 inmates released in the past, said Zuhair, only two were arrested and returned to jail.

The vast majority of inmates in Maafushi jail and Himmafushi low-security prison were incarcerated for drug-related offences.

Opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) Deputy Leader and Spokesperson Ibrahim ‘Mavota’ Shareef meanwhile stressed that “a balance” should be struck between the security of society and the need to rehabilitate offenders.

“We accept that rehabilitating convicts should be the main priority, but it should be done within a strong rehabilitation programme,” he said. “Law and order and the peacefulness of society must be maintained. If not, the whole country could turn into a jail.”

Shareef also cast doubt on the figures provided by the press secretary: “We don’t believe such numbers given by this government as they always mislead and lie to the public. The public doesn’t have confidence in what the government says anymore.”

He added that previous rehabilitation and parole programmes were not particularly successful in reintegrating inmates into society.

However, said Shareef, “we don’t believe that [convicts] should forever stay in jail either. They are also the children of our friends and families. We will not oppose releasing them through a strong and sound rehabilitation programme.”

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Maalhos islanders allege councillors involved in robbery of safe with Rf100,000 in cash

Islanders of Maalhos in Alif Alif Atoll have alleged that the island’s councillors took Rf100,000 (US$6,485) from the office safe last week.

“It could not have happened without the knowledge of the councilors, almost all the islanders believe that one cannot just go past security and reach the safe so easily and steal it,” an islander told Minivan News today on the condition of anonymity.

“The culprits have sawed the steel rods placed behind the window and entered council office.”

He alleged that it was “obvious” that the councilors were behind the robbery.

“That’s how everyone tells it when they speak of the incident,” he said, adding that police were yet to determine who was involved.

“A police team arrived on this island the very next day but they could not figure out who it was and they left, no arrests were made,” he said.

A police media official told Minivan News that the incident was reported to police on Wednesday afternoon last week.

“A police team was sent to the island for investigation, so far no one has been arrested in connection with the case,” he confirmed.

Maalhos Councillors Ahmed Rashid however dismissed the islanders’ speculation.

“I can’t believe that any councillors would have done it,” he said, adding that three out of the five councillors were not in the island at the time of the robbery.

However, he added, there “might be fingerprints” of the councillors on both the safe and the cash in it as they had “counted the money the night before and gave it to an administrative staff.”

Rashid noted that “a number of visitors” were also in the island on the night of the robbery.

He explained that the Rf100,000 in cash was raised from the sale of coconuts and rent collected from plots leased out in the island.

The money was to be used to manage the island’s powerhouse, he said.

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Man found dead in Magoodhoo beach

A 57 year-old man was found dead yesterday on the beach of the island of Magoodhoo in Faafu Atoll.

According to police, Mohamed Hussein, Magoodhoo Leklean, was found at about 7:10am at the western side of the island and was already dead when he was taken to the island’s health centre.

Police are currently investigating the case.

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President sends delegation to Thinadhoo

A high-level delegation from President Mohamed Nasheed departed for Gaaf Dhaal Thinadhoo yesterday to discuss ongoing and planned development projects with the people of the island.

According to the President’s Office, the delegation will discuss the Thinadhoo Development Corporation due to formed soon as well as land use plans for the island.

The President’s delegation will also discuss the name change proposed by the island council and provide historical information about the issue available from government archive.

The delegation includes Home Minister Hassan Afeef, Housing Minister Mohamed Aslam, Finance Minister Ahmed Inaz, Thinadhoo MP Mohamed Gasam, Madaveli MP Mohamed Nazim, Henveiru South MP Hamid Abdul Gafoor, Human Rights Ambassador Mohamed ‘GoGo’ Latheef, Press Secretary Mohamed Zuhair, Secretary of the Executive Services Office Mohamed Ziyad and Adnan Haleem, member of the Public Enterprises Monitoring and Evaluation Board.

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Nasheed named among Zayed Future Energy Prize jury

President Mohamed Nasheed has been named among the jury of the UAE’s Zayed Future Energy Prize, an international award to recognise innovation, leadership and impact in renewable energy and sustainability.

Among the other judges chosen for the panel are Leonardo Dicaprio, Oscar-winning actor; Andre Agassi, Grand Slam tennis champion; Cherie Blair, wife of former British Prime Minister; and Elizabeth Dipuo Peters, South African Minister of Energy.

The newly-selected judges join continuing members Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, President of Iceland; Ahmed Al Sayegh, Chairman of Masdar; and Dr Susan Hockfield, president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The final judging panel will meet later this year in a four-tiered open process that selects the prize winners and finalists who will be honoured in an awards ceremony in Abu Dhabi on January 17, 2012.

The annual Zayed Future Energy Prize is open to individuals, large companies, entrepreneurs, small- to medium-size enterprises (SMEs) and NGOs in the field of renewable energy and sustainability. Award category and prizes are: SMEs/NGOs: $1.5 million (winner), $1m (first runner-up), and $500,000 (second runner-up); Lifetime Achievement — Individual: $500,000; large corporations: Recognition Award.

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