Nasheed urges suspension of infrastructure projects amid dire dollar crisis

Former President and MDP Chairman Mohamed Nasheed has called on the government to suspend all ongoing infrastructure projects until the dollar depreciates, citing the worsening foreign currency shortage.

In a post on X, Nasheed said it was not appropriate for the state to continue spending heavily on infrastructure while struggling to fund basic services due to the dollar crisis.

“All infrastructure work should be stopped, and unfinished projects in the islands should be handed over to the island councils,” Nasheed wrote.

Dollar ge agu thiri nuvanees Sarukaarun asaasee khidhumaiy thakah kuraa kharadhu fiyavaa ehves kharadheh kurun rangalheh noon. Umraanee hurihaa masahkatheh huhtaalan jehey. Rahrashugai nunimi huri project thah Rashu Council aa havaal kurun rangalhu vaane. Council in cross subsidy…

— Mohamed Nasheed (@MohamedNasheed) July 18, 2026

He said councils could complete these projects through cross-subsidy arrangements, a model where revenue from profitable services is used to finance essential public projects that cannot generate income on their own. In practice, councils may use earnings from land leases, commercial permits or utility fees to fund small-scale development works.

Nasheed’s remarks come amid intensifying political debate over the country’s foreign currency shortage. Speaking at an MDP panel discussion last Sunday, former Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer claimed the government had not brought in “a single dollar” from abroad in the past two and a half years, alleging that existing reserves were spent on “wasteful” and unnecessary projects.

Responding at a press conference on Tuesday, Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed accused Ameer of being “the real architect” of the economic crisis, saying he had no standing to comment on the current situation.

Ameer later posted on X that the dollar had reached MVR 21 during the nearly three years of the current administration, reiterating that the government was draining the state treasury while failing to secure foreign currency inflows. He also dismissed Saeed’s criticism, saying the minister was not “qualified” to speak about debt.

Meanwhile, the MDP parliamentary group has requested a meeting with the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) Governor to discuss the measures being taken to address the dollar shortage.