Listed companies to have minimum two female board members

Capital Market Development Authority (CMDA) has amended the Corporate Governance Code to require at all listed companies to have at least two women on their boards of directors.

CMDA said that in addition to the change, the code has also been amended to include a Comply or Explain clause, which requires the boards to have at least 33 percent of female board members by 2016.

Maldives Stock Exchange currently has seven listed companies. Bank of Maldives, which has a board of 11 members and Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) which has a board of 6 members, each have two female directors. Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) has one female director among its 10-member board.

The four remaining companies; Maldives Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) , which has a 9 member board, the State Trading Organization (STO), with a 6 member board and Amana Takaful Maldives, with a 7 member board and Dhiraagu, which has 7 members in its board of directors, do not have female members.