The state’s official dollar reserve did not have enough funds to pay for essential imports for a month by the end of June, statistics from the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) have shown.
The gross international reserve stood at USD 509.1 million at the end of last month, according to the MMA’s latest statistics. This was USD 17 million higher than the previous month.
But when unusable funds (predetermined short-term drains) are deducted, the reserve was lower than May last month. This was due to an increase in the amount to be deducted.
According to calculations based on statistics from various sources, the amount needed to pay for essential imports for a month is estimated to be USD 75 million. But the usable reserve stood at USD 66.9 million at the end of last month.
The usable reserve also fell to USD 20 million recently, according to information from credible sources with experience in the finance sector. Adhadhu sought the information after former President Abdulla Yameen said that there was only USD 18 million in the usable reserve.
“The country’s usable reserve has never fallen to this level. The country’s usable reserve would never fall to this level. There’s USD 18 million as a usable reserve,” he said at a People’s National Front (PNF) rally on Thursday.
Information obtained by Adhadhu after Yameen’s remarks show that the usable reserve fell so low as a result of financing fuel imports and providing dollars to state-owned enterprises (SOEs).
But the state of the usable reserve is not as dire now due to dollar income collected since then, a reliable source told Adhadhu on the condition of anonymity.
Despite the depletion of the usable reserve, the government has yet to comment on the issue. Each time that senior government officials have spoken about public finances, they said that there is no cause for concern as reforms are underway.
The reasons for the decline in the reserve include repayment of debt taken for spending disproportionate to income, skyrocketing oil prices in the global market, and the lack of benefits from large investments in the economy and infrastructure development.
