The United States has announced USD 2 million in economic support for the Maldives.
The Foreign Ministry said the grant aid would assist the expansion of social protection services by civil society organisations and support the COVID-19 recovery policies of the Maldives government. It includes technical support to the government, private sector, and financial institutions to support businesses affected by the pandemic, said the ministry.
Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid thanked U.S Secretary of State Micheal R Pompeo and the U.S Government for the timely assistance and stressed on the importance of such assistance from partners to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over 500 cases of COVID-19 have been identified in the Maldives thus far. The economy of the tourism-dependent archipelago has been hit hard as a result of the pandemic. The World Bank projects the real GDP of the Maldives to contract by 8.5% in 2020.
Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid
