Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed has announced that efforts were underway to reach a new Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Maldives and India.
An FTA was signed between South Asian countries in 2004. The agreement was titled the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA).
The agreement was signed to empower the region economically and facilitate trade. Maldives signed SAFTA but does not have FTAs with individual countries in the region.
At a press conference on Saturday, Economic Minister Saeed said India had requested for an FTA with the Maldives.
"In my recent talks with India, they expressed their wish to have a free trade agreement with Maldives separately, in addition to SAFTA. The President wants to have that opportunity with all countries," he said.
Saeed also said that 296 types of seafood can now be exported to China without any tariffs under an existing FTA. The FTA signed in December 2017 will become "active" when the new session of the Parliament begins work, he added.
He noted that the efforts to form an FTA with Turkey is in its final stages while discussions were also ongoing for a broader scope of trade agreement with the UK.
