The government has welcomed an announcement by the United Kingdom to get public opinion on establishing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the Maldives which would eliminate tariffs imposed on Maldivian fish exports to the UK.
The eight-week call for input in preparation to negotiate the FTA was announced on Thursday. It invited businesses, organisations and individuals to help shape the UK’s negotiating aims with the Maldives.
“Maldives is one of the few countries within the Commonwealth that the UK has not pursued a FTA with or offered preferential market access through an existing Trading Scheme framework,” read a press release by the UK’s Department of Business and Trade.
The Maldives government welcomed the announcement in a press release on Thursday afternoon and said the “trade agreement will bolster economic cooperation between the Maldives and UK.”
“Over the past four years, the Government of Maldives has actively pursued negotiations with the United Kingdom, striving to eliminate the existing 20 percent tariff imposed on our fish exports to the UK,” it read.
The President’s Office said a solution will be found to the issue of tariffs imposed on Maldivian fish exports to the UK as a direct result of those negotiations.
“Through this agreement, the Government of Maldives seeks to gain preferential treatment to the goods traded to the United Kingdom and unhindered access to its market by elimination of tariffs.
Foreign minister Abdulla Shahid said this marks a significant milestone in strengthening our economic cooperation and opening new avenues for increased trade between the Maldives and the UK.
The UK's ambassador to Maldives, Caron Rohsler, said establishing a UK resident mission in the capital city Male' in 2019 was a recognition of "how much more our bilateral relationship could grow."
The FTA is expected to enhance bilateral trade between the Maldives and the UK, opening new avenues of economic growth and prosperity, according to the President's Office.
