Maldives sees 200% rise in grant aid

The Maldives saw a 200 percent rise in grant aid between January and May of this year compared to the same period last year, according to figures released by the Finance Ministry.

The fiscal development report for May shows the state received MVR 394.1 million in grants between January and May 2026. This marks a sharp 207.89 percent increase compared to the MVR 128 million the country received during the same period last year.

The biggest spike in grant aid came in May itself. According to the report, the country received MVR 284.2 million in grants in May 2026, marking a sharp 907.8 percent increase compared to the MVR 28.2 million in grants it received in May 2025.

The total grant aid received by the end of May is now above the MVR 373.6 million the state had initially projected to receive over the entire year.

The total revenue and grants have seen a 10.8 percent increase this year, up from MVR 17.13 billion between January and May 2025 to MVR 18.98 billion this year.

The state expects to generate total MVR 40.37 billion revenue and grants this year.

Meanwhile, the total revenue in May alone shows a slight increase of 0.82 percent, up from MVR 2.81 billion in 2025 to MVR 2.84 billion in 2026.

The biggest contribution to revenue came from taxes.

The state expects to collect total MVR 31.3 billion in tax revenue this year.

The state generated MVR 14.74 billion in tax revenue between January and May 2026, marking a 12.86 percent increase compared to the MVR 13.06 billion generated during same period last year.

However, the tax revenue in May shows a 10.55 percent decline, down from MVR 2.17 billion in 2025 to MVR 1.94 billion in 2026.

Meanwhile, the non-tax revenue generated between January and May 2026 shows a 2.44 percent decline, down from MVR 3.94 billion in 2025 to MVR 3.84 billion in 2026.

The state expects to collect total MVR 8.7 billion in non-tax revenue this year.

The increase in state’s revenue corresponds with a significant rise in expenditure during the same period.