Thursday
19th Dec 2024
Dhivehi Edition
A Male branch of the State Bank of India.
The State Bank of India (SBI) had lent billions of rufiyaa to the government of former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih, which the MDP administration had promised a portion of which would be converted to free aid.
In 2019, the previous government borrowed $150 million by selling T-bills. That’s about 2.3 billion MVR. From the total, $50 billion has been paid by the current government, which equates to roughly 700 million MVR.
The government is due to pay $50 million to SBI in April and July next year, which was previously withdrawn on the pretext that it would be converted into free aid later. However, the money has not been converted into free aid during the last five years of MDP rule, as was initially promised.
The previous government had repeatedly said that the money would be converted into free aid, but the State Bank of India did not convert it into free aid, and instead rolled it over.
The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has also expressed dissatisfaction with the previous government for not converting any of the loan money taken by the previous government to free aid.