Minister urges Maldives tourism industry to embrace digital innovation and AI

Tourism Minister Mohamed Ameen on Sunday urged the Maldives tourism industry to embrace digital innovation and artificial intelligence to enhance resilience, improve visitor experiences, and support the sustainable development of tourism.

He made the appeal in a message on the Tourism Day Special Supplement published by the Tourism Ministry on occasion of World Tourism Day.

World Tourism Day 2026 is being marked under the theme “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism.”

In his message, Ameen said that the theme is one that fits the momentum the Maldivian tourism is in.

Emphasizing how tourism remains the backbone of the Maldivian economy and the foundation on which much of the country’s national development rests, Ameen highlighted on how technology is opening new ways for the world to discover the Maldives.

“Travelers now plan, compare and book through digital platforms and through tools powered by artificial intelligence. These tools bring our islands closer to travelers in every market, and they give our industry a clearer view of demand than we have ever had,” he said.

He highlighted on the endless opportunity in embracing digital technology and AI.

“Digital platforms allow an operator in the furthest atoll to reach the same traveler as the largest resort. They help our guesthouses find new markets, help our businesses plan with better information, and give us stronger tools to manage and protect our islands and reefs,” he said.

Ameen said that the Tourism Ministry was working to make certain that opportunity is available across the whole industry, by focusing on the foundations that make that possible.

“We are strengthening the data that supports decisions across the sector, modernizing how we license, regulate and report, and investing in the digital skills of Maldivians so that our people lead this work,” he said. “Technology serves our industry best when it supports the judgement and hospitality that have always defined Maldivian tourism.”

Ameen stressed that connectivity is central to this effort.

“With tourism and civil aviation brought together under one Ministry, we plan the travelers’ journey as a single experience. Our investments in airports, air services and passenger systems are making arrival into the Maldives faster and simpler, and widening access to the north and the south so that the benefits of tourism reach every atoll,” he said.

“Our reefs, our islands and our people remain the reason the world comes here. Technology gives us better ways to protect them, understand them and share their story with the world.”

He concluded his message by extend my gratitude to the pioneers who built the Maldivian tourism industry, and all stakeholders across the tourism sector.

“…and above all to the thousands of Maldivians whose work sustains it every day. Let us take up this next chapter with the ambition and the care that has carried us this far,” he said.