The Maldives Monetary Authority settled the US$ 400 million currency swap facility drawn from the Reserve Bank of India in October 2024, the foreign ministry announced on Thursday night. The settlement came the same day India approved a first withdrawal of INR 30 billion (about US$ 350 million) by the MMA under a separate rupee swap window of the same bilateral agreement, signed during President Muizzu's state visit to India in October 2024. The rupee facility, which falls under the SAARC Currency Swap Framework for 2024–2027 and carries concessions on interest rates and other conditions, is intended for trade settlement with India rather than general dollar liquidity. The foreign ministry welcomed the approval as support for the government's strategy "to further reinforce economic stability amidst the evolving situation in West Asia", and noted that US$ 50 million of a US$ 150 million Treasury Bill package secured through the State Bank of India in 2019 had also been cleared. In a separate statement, the Indian High Commission in Malé said the Reserve Bank of India had provided aggregate swap support of US$ 1.1 billion to the Maldives since the SAARC framework's inception in 2012, and that India had rolled over US$ 100 million in Treasury Bills last year as emergency financial assistance. The settlement of the US$ 400 million facility, which had been rolled over twice since October 2024, according to earlier reporting by the Economic Times, comes less than a month after reserves were drawn down to repay US$ 525 million in sukuk obligations.
Homeland Security Minister Ali Ihusan faced widespread criticism after publicly disclosing the messages exchanged between an 18-year-old MNU student and the police victim support unit before her death in a dormitory on Monday. Ihusan denied social media claims that she had repeatedly called police and the Family and Children Service Centre for help. He read out the timeline at a press conference, including the student's messages saying she was "so close to giving up" as well as details of communications with her brother. Critics said the disclosure of confidential victim support messages on national television was irresponsible and could deter others from seeking help. Ihusan said police had previously attended to the student and that police conduct in handling the case will be reviewed. According to the timeline, the student messaged police victim support at 8:40pm and exchanged several messages with officers, then went quiet until 12:38am when she sent a message saying "I'm gone". Police were dispatched at 1:03am, entered the dormitory at 1:08am, and found her at 1:32am. MNU suspended the dormitory's head, Ahmed Shafeeq, after it emerged that the student had been hospitalised for a self-harm incident last month but he did not report the case to university management or refer her to student support services, Mihaaru reported.
Ihusan denied police are conducting any criminal investigation into Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim. He told reporters their sources were unreliable and that no such investigation exists. The denial follows Nazim's removal from two powerful parliamentary committees earlier this week amid speculation about a criminal probe against him.
The MDP's appeals tribunal ordered the party to void its announcement of a June 12 chairperson election, ruling that the notice was issued without the tribunal president's authorisation as required under party statutes. The ruling comes amid a broader power struggle, with former President Nasheed and ex-chair Fayyaz Ismail objecting to the election timeline, particularly a membership cutoff date that excluded thousands of new members, with some allegedly transferred to PNC without their knowledge. Notably, the tribunal president who issued the ruling is the brother-in-law of Fayyaz Ismail, who backs Nasheed's chairperson bid.
The MDP's membership reached 50,000 after 4,876 people joined the party on the day candidacy opened for the chairperson election. The surge was driven by competing factions rushing to register supporters before the voter eligibility cutoff, which had been set at midnight on the day applications opened. Former President Nasheed, who is contesting the chairperson seat against Galolhu South MP Meekail Naseem, accused the party's interim leadership of deliberately shortening the registration window to block new members. The chair of MDP's elections committee Mohamed Falah stepped down from the role and openly joined Meekail's campaign, but denied claims that he had re-posted Meekail's campaign posts while serving on the committee.
STELCO took over electricity, water and sewerage services from Fenaka Corporation on 25 islands across Baa, Lhaviyani and Meemu atolls, bringing STELCO's total service area to 61 islands. The transfer was ordered by President Muizzu as Fenaka struggles with financial difficulties that have hampered its operations. The government had previously considered folding Fenaka into STO and later proposed merging it with STELCO for "synergies," but neither plan was implemented and no reforms have materialised.
The Prosecutor General declined to charge four men from Gaaf Alif Vilingili with drug trafficking, organised crime and money laundering, citing insufficient evidence, and ordered their release from pre-trial detention. Police had arrested the men in a January raid dubbed "Operation Alimagu" after a year-long investigation that found over MVR 300 million and more than US$ 400,000 had flowed through their bank accounts, vastly exceeding their combined salary income of roughly MVR 1 million. Three of the four were instead charged with cannabis use, while the case against the fourth was dropped entirely. The PG told police to continue investigating.
Businessman and former Kaashidhoo MP Abdullah Jabir joined the ruling PNC, saying he was drawn by President Muizzu's leadership. Jabir, who has previously held leadership roles in DRP, JP and MDP and unsuccessfully attempted to register his own Green Party, said his immediate priority would be winning the Hithadhoo North by-election for PNC on June 6. He was last seen on the political stage campaigning for PNC in the April 4 council elections after a period away from politics.
Construction Minister Dr Muththalib warned that key government projects – including the Vilimalé bridge and land reclamation works – will miss their deadlines due to rising fuel costs and construction material shortages linked to the Middle East conflict. The bridge, originally due for completion this year, is now expected to be finished in late 2027, with the government opting to support the Indian contractor rather than replace them to avoid further delays. Over 50 percent of the Rasmalé reclamation is meanwhile complete, though that timeline may also shift. The minister said no projects will be halted, only rescheduled, and that the situation is beyond the government's control.
Ahmed Ashfan was transferred from his post as deputy controller of immigration to a deputy minister position at the youth ministry, as part of a broader reshuffle following the ruling party's poor showing in this month's local council elections. Ashfan, who spent 18 years at Immigration before being appointed deputy controller in April 2024, is also a former national football player and the brother of Ali Ashfaq, widely regarded as the Maldives' greatest ever footballer.
The proportion of foreign workers in the Maldives with valid documentation has risen from 29 percent to 62 percent since the government launched "Operation Kurangi" in May 2024, Homeland Security Minister Ihusan told the press. Fingerprints have been collected from around 206,000 foreign nationals, with only 2,933 still unaccounted for, down from over 100,000 at the start of the operation. The third phase begins on May 2, after which any undocumented worker encountered by law enforcement will be immediately arrested and deported, the minister warned.
Following the abolition of the local government ministry and the transfer of its responsibilities to the finance ministry, President Muizzu appointed Finance Minister Moosa Zameer as chair of the Local Government Authority board. Zameer replaces former minister Adam Shareef in the role.
