The government said on Sunday that efforts are underway to offer tax concessions to Addu city's businesses in a bid to transform Addu's economy.
President's Office policy secretary Ahmed Hamdhan said in a tweet that projects are being carried out simultaneously in Addu because results cannot be produced without all the cogs of the economy turning together.
Land reclamation, road construction, airport development and the creation of new islands for tourism are taking place at the same time, he said.
"When the projects invested in by the government are completed, about 7000 beds would be added in addition to the 1528 beds (including Shangri-La) currently registered in Addu," he said.
"The current bed capacity would increase more than fourfold. In addition to tourism, the government is doing the work necessary to provide tax concessions to businesses operating in Addu in order to transform the entire economic landscape."
The land reclamation project launched by the government in Addu is going to permanently change Addu's chart. Reclamation in the atoll is on a bigger scale than previously seen in any other atoll.
The project would be completed after expanding enough land for the populations of Addu's Hithadhoo and Maradhoo-Feydhoo for the next 50 years and creating three brand new islands for resort development.
Some 194 hectares is to be added in Addu with an expenditure of MVR 1.5 billion.
