Fitch Ratings upgraded the Maldives' Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating to "CCC-" from "CC", citing reduced default risk after the April repayment of the country's US$ 500 million sukuk and reduced near-term external debt-servicing pressure. Both ratings sit in speculative ("junk") territory, well below investment grade, but the upgrade moves the country two notches further from the default category Fitch had previously assigned. Fitch said the Maldives still faces high external and fiscal vulnerabilities – twin deficits, high public debt, low reserve coverage, exposure to the Iran-war energy shock, and heavy tourism dependence – and projected the current account deficit to widen sharply to 17.5 percent of GDP in 2026 from 8.4 percent in 2025, with the fiscal deficit reaching 14.6 percent of GDP against the government's 7.1 percent target. General government debt is projected at 119.2% of GDP in 2027. According to Fitch, the April sukuk repayment (US$ 500 million principal and US$2 4.68 million as the final coupon) was funded by US$ 350 million from the Sovereign Development Fund (which was nearly drained, recovering only to US$21 million by the end of April) and US$ 175 million from usable foreign reserves. Gross reserves fell from US$1.3 billion in March to US$ 718 million by the end of April. Welcoming the upgrade, the finance ministry said debt-to-GDP had fallen to 121.2 percent by April from 129.9 percent at the end of 2025, putting the Maldives on a "sustainable debt trajectory" with the country "better positioned to weather" the impact from the Middle East war. Fitch expected the government to remain reliant on official creditors with IMF financial support, if requested, contingent on credible fiscal consolidation and debt restructuring.
The Bank of Maldives's proposed US$300 million government-guaranteed sukuk is "neither intended for budget support nor for the cash flow requirements of the Government," but a jointly planned initiative with BML to stimulate tourism-led growth in the northern and southern regions of the country, Finance Minister Zameer said on X The sukuk would help expand the government's revenue base and support medium-term macro-fiscal targets, he said. BML, which is 50.8 percent owned by the government, has been holding investor meetings across Asia, the Middle East and Europe for what would be its first international capital markets issuance, with Mashreqbank arranging the roadshow. BML's director for financial strategy and planning Abdulla Hassan told Bloomberg in early May that the proceeds would help by increasing foreign currency availability in the economy, with the upgraded Velana airport and other airport expansions having more than quadrupled annual arrival capacity to seven million visitors.
The Elections Commission dissolved two political parties – the Maldives Labour and Social Democratic Party (MLSDP) and The Democrats – after both parties failed to reach the legally required minimum membership of 3,000 within the deadline given under the Political Parties Act.
A company that rented heavy vehicles to the state-owned Road Development Corporation for the Addu Hithadhoo Fishimathi land reclamation project staged a protest outside the RDC office after going six months without receiving about MVR 5 million in agreed rental payments. Lifted Maldives, which has been supplying vehicles since November last year, said RDC blamed delayed finance ministry disbursements. But direct checks with the Finance Ministry revealed the funds had already been released, the company said, adding that it will continue protesting until payment is received.
Bank of Maldives filed a formal complaint against Adhadhu with the Media and Broadcasting Commission, over an April 20 article reporting that the bank had suspended dollar support for import-related telegraphic transfers. The commission notified Adhadhu of its decision to investigate and gave the outlet seven days to respond. The original Adhadhu article quoted directors of several large importing companies – speaking anonymously, citing fear of political targeting – who said the suspension was forcing them to source dollars from the black market at high rates and contributing to rising local prices. BML had been approached for comment before publication but did not respond. It issued a press release denying the suspension after the article appeared.
An audit of the Addu City Council's 2022-2024 finances flagged MVR 1.2 million (US$ 77,820) in foreign travel spending in breach of government cost-cutting directives, alongside multiple procurement and revenue management failures. A 2023 Malaysia-Singapore study trip for 10 council participants cost MVR 515,101, of which MVR 65,381 went to an event management course unrelated to the trip's stated purpose, with no documentation of how the learning was being applied, the report stated. A 2024 WDC trip to the same destinations cost MVR 685,509, including MVR 116,286 for the secretary general and a council member who did not participate in the training. The audit also flagged the Maradhoo fish market project, an MVR 3.3 million contract awarded in December 2021 for completion in six months, still unfinished by February this year; two of three fish plant projects awarded in 2020 (Hithadhoo open, Maradhoo and Hulhumeedhoo incomplete); MVR 512,733 in procurements split into transactions under the MVR 35,000 single-source threshold to avoid competitive bidding; MVR 292,620 in quotations obtained from related third parties; MVR 13.95 million in unpaid land rents (with MVR 7.65 million long-overdue from 54 plots, and incomplete records preventing verification); 166,340 square feet added to tourism plots without public announcement; MVR 5.58 million lost from re-granting two-year grace periods to land lease transferees; MVR 492,533 in council revenue not deposited into the public bank account; and a MVR 1.87 million conditional grant spent on planting 100 date palms along a Maradhoo road pavement, which was destroyed by the planting and required further council spending to repair. The audit recommended the council improve land-rent records and collection enforcement, ensure prompt deposit of revenue, and adopt an updated development and financial plan with public consultation.
Police are investigating the electrocution of a 14-year-old boy in Laamu Gan last week. The boy – who had been receiving treatment at IGMH after being airlifted to Malé – has been taken off a ventilator and is recovering, his mother said in a Facebook post. The boy had been part of a group of teenagers trying to light Eid bonfires on the beach when he was shocked while attempting to draw electricity from a box near the community beach park. The boy's mother said the incident was the result of "deliberate failures" in public safety, including the failure of safety systems to cut power, and called on Fenaka to investigate and prevent further incidents. Gan council president Afsal Jaufar told Mihaaru the box was a temporary installation used for previous Eid celebrations and had been locked, though could be opened with wire-cutters. The scene had been dismantled before police arrived. Fenaka said the boys had taken electricity from a streetlight with a broken Earth-Leakage Circuit Breaker (ELCB), a safety device that prevents shocks. Fenaka said maintaining ELCBs on streetlights is the council's responsibility and that its own role is limited to connecting power. A Fenaka inspection in 2024 found ELCBs missing from streetlights across many islands it serves. The Utility Regulatory Authority fined Fenaka MVR 50,000 over the issue, and the government gave councils a deadline to fix it. That earlier issue surfaced after an 18-year-old in Raa Ungoofaaru died after stepping into a puddle electrified by a faulty streetlight pole.
Malé City Council unanimously approved planting medicinal herbs used in traditional Maldivian medicine on available plots in the capital, responding to complaints from traditional healers about the scarcity of such plants in Malé. The council rejected Mayor Adam Azim's initial proposal to use cemetery land. Councillors raised concerns about planting in burial grounds and the risk of individuals monopolising the plants without oversight. The council agreed the plants will be grown on non-cemetery land under council supervision and accessible to the public.
Police dropped "national" from a renamed intelligence unit after criticism from former police chief Mohamed Hameed. The unit is now styled simply Intelligence Service (IS). The Maldives Police Service had restructured its intelligence department into the "National Intelligence Service" as part of broader organisational changes police said were aimed at strengthening administration and improving the quality of their work. Hameed had argued that the "national" framing was a serious error because "national" denotes work done at the level of the state and the Maldives has no legal framework to establish a national-level intelligence agency. A national intelligence service could not be created through internal police restructuring but had to be established through legislation, broad consultation and democratic oversight, he wrote. The original name implied MPS was positioning itself as the country's apex intelligence body when the country lacks legislation defining such a body, its mandate, or how it would coordinate with MNDF, NCTC, Customs, Immigration and other agencies that all hold intelligence responsibilities, he observed, arguing that credibility in intelligence work comes from professionalism, lawful collection and accountable oversight rather than from a grand title.
Following a High Court ruling ordering his reinstatement, Inspector of Police Ahmed Shiyam returned to duty 12 years after being dismissed in 2014 on allegations of misconduct as North Police Division commander. Shiyam told Dhauru he formally began reporting for duty two weeks ago but wore his uniform to the police headquarters for the first time today. The state has appealed to the Supreme Court the portion of the High Court ruling ordering back pay from the date of dismissal, arguing it conflicts with a recent Supreme Court precedent capping reinstatement-related back pay at six months.
A new batch of National Service technical training recruits departed for Baa Kihaadhoo, where they will undergo a four-month programme at the MNDF School of Engineering and Logistics. Chief of Defence Force Major General Ibrahim Hilmy met the 77 students – 64 male and 13 female, aged 16 to 19 – before their departure. The technical training follows the National Service Initial Training programme.
Malé City Council extended existing Vilimalé market stall agreements until the end of July, after contracts expired in April but could not be addressed. The council voted to use the extension period to develop new regulations, including a ban on subletting, measures to address foreign nationals occupying stalls, and a points-based system rewarding prompt rent payers, before reopening all stalls for fresh applications. Councillors also noted the market's poor condition and called for upgrades before new agreements are signed. The council also voted to register people who lose their FDC flats, due to inability to pay rent or selling the unit, on the Malé civil registry, with a notation indicating the circumstances of their registration. The motion passed with three councillors voting against.
PNC decided to bring forward its national congress to avoid clashing with the GCE O-Level examinations, with the council passing a Muizzu proposal unanimously on Wednesday night, a senior party official told Mihaaru. The congress had previously been scheduled for October. The new date has not been disclosed. MP Ibrahim Shujau said council meetings would now be held more frequently.
