Committee approves Special Economic Zone Bill

The Parliament Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Bill, proposed by the government.

The bill was approved with five votes in favour by members of Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM) and Maldives Development Alliance (MDA), at a meeting held today.

Before it was passed, the committee made several revisions based on suggestions by MPs and relevant government authorities.

These revisions include the inclusion of an MP in the 17-member SEZ Board, which is to be established under this bill. When it was first proposed, the bill stated that the Board should consist of one member from every relevant government institution, which did not include the parliament.

The bill passed today also covers guidelines on tax payment. It states that the developers who invest in the SEZ may be exempted from paying tax as decided by the President, however, this must be done according to a regulation which is to be established by the SEZ Board.

The bill further states that any information related to developers’ revenues must be made available to Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) upon request, in line with a regulation to be established by MIRA under the SEZ Act.

The bill was accepted by the parliament and sent for assessment by the Economic Affairs on 14 July. On 13 August (last Wednesday), members of Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) and Jumhooree Party (JP) boycotted a meeting held regarding the assessment of this bill.

The committee’s meeting held yesterday evening was again attended by MDP and JP members.

Its meeting this morning however, was not attended by MDP, and its meeting this afternoon again was not attended by either party.