The UAE government has pledged to arrange USD 80 million or MVR 1.2 billion needed to complete the Velana International Airport (VIA) development project, the President-Elect's Spokesman Mohamed Firuzul said on Wednesday.
The revelation came after President-Elect Dr. Mohamed Muizzu traveled to Abu Dhabi on a private jet on Sunday and returned on Tuesday night.
The President-Elect's Office did not provide details about the trip.
Due to changes made to the design, an additional USD 200 million was needed to complete VIA's new passenger terminal terminal, of which USD 100 million was previously pledged by the Saudi Fund.
Of the remaining USD 100 million, USD 80 million will be provided by the UAE government's Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), Firuzul said.
Firuzul said the other USD 20 million would not be needed.
"When these funds are arranged, all the funds needed to complete the airport project would been secured. With the new funding that has been arranged, we have got the confidence and certainty that the airport project could be taken forward swiftly and completed by the set target," he said.
Dr. Muizzu previously said the VIA project will be completed by September 2024.
He will visit the airport to observe work on the project, Firuzul said.
The UAE government also assured Muizzu that it would provide budget support and offer full cooperation for projects needed to grow the economy, the spokesman said.
But the outgoing government's Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer denied Firuzul's claim that the USD 80 million needed for the VIA project was secured during Muizzu's unofficial visit to Abu Dhabi.
"Even very recently, USD 100 million needed to complete the airport was secured from the Saudi Fund. The airport development is a project that all members of the Arab Coordination Group are investing in," Ameer told Adhadhu after Firuzul's press briefing.
"Meetings of the Arab Coordination Group took place this year as well as in November and December last year. They gave commitment during that. They gave assurance that all the funds needed to complete the project would be provided through a ratio. Letters to the effect were also sent to all members."
The outgoing administration secured the funds long before Muizzu's visit, during which the UAE government only "shared the figure with him," Ameer said.
"Assurance was given earlier that the additional funds needed to complete the project will be provided. That is something that was completed through our efforts," he added.
The USD 350 million VIA expansion is a large-scale project financed by loans from several parties, including the Kuwait Fund, Saudi Fund, Abu Dhabi, UNK and the OPEC Fund for Development.
The UAE government's ADFD is also carrying out other projects in the Maldives, including the development of the Maafaru international airport and an "ultra-luxury" tourism zone in Noonu atoll, both of which were awarded to the fund by former President Abdulla Yameen's administration.
A USD 60 million airport was developed as part of the project. The second phase of the airport project is also ongoing with ADFD's assistance.
The fund is managed by the Abu Dhabi royal family. Established on July 15, 1971, ADFD's chairman is UAE Deputy Prime Minister Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
