Population consolidation keystone of 2016 state budget
As the dispersion of the Maldivian people in 188 islands is an obstacle to economic development, Jihad said the government’s population consolidation policy is to settle 70 percent of the population to Hulhumalé.
16 Nov 2015, 9:00 AM
All Maldivians should consider moving to big islands or urban centres for a higher standard of living, Finance Minister Abdulla Jihad said at the parliament’s budget committee today.
The dispersion of the Maldivian people in 188 islands is an obstacle to economic development, Jihad said, reiterating that the government’s population consolidation policy is to settle 70 percent of the population to Hulhumalé.
“What we want the most is to live, not just to stay alive. You can stay alive at an uninhabited island as well. But you can only enjoy a certain quality [of life] and a certain lifestyle in islands with large populations,” he said.
The cost of living is also comparatively high in the Maldives and the government does not get “value for money” for infrastructure projects in small islands, he added.
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