The Sovereign Development Fund (SDF) stood at USD 18 million as of September, figures have confirmed.

According to the position report of the proposed state budget for next year published in the government gazette today, the cash balance in the SDF dollar account stood at USD 18 million at the end of September. The cash balance in the Rufiyaa account stood at MVR 111 million, bringing the total cash balance to MVR 388 million.

According to the report, the SDF's total assets, including domestic securities and investments, stand at MVR 8 billion.

Two days ago, the government acknowledged that some of the money deposited in the SDF had been used.

Speaking at the Republic Day ceremony on Sunday night, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said he had deposited USD 78 million into the fund so far this year, adding that money from the fund had been used for some purposes.

"We have used it on different occasions to make payments for the sake of the people. Then we recover it, replace it. So our target is to increase it from USD 78 million to USD 100 million and to USD 150 million by the end of next year," he said.