Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology has stated that it is addressing the concerns regarding the plastic bag fee.
The plastic bag fee came into effect on April 18. Every business activity operating in the Maldives are now required to charge a fee of USD0.13 as a plastic bag fee. This has resulted in a huge price hike for plastic bag bundles, which has risen from USD1.6 per bundle with 100 plastic bags to USD15.
In a statement, the ministry stated that the government had included a clause in the Waste Management Bill to grant fee exemptions for bundles with over 50 plastic bags but that the Parliament passed the bill after removing the clause. The ministry clarified that the government allowed the bill’s passing due to its importance and decided to propose amendments later to include the necessary clauses.
As such, the ministry noted the amendment bill proposed by Parliamentarian Mohamed Rashid on behalf of the government in March to grant fee exemptions for plastic bag bundles. The ministry assured that the price of bundles will be reduced upon ratification of the amendment.
The government is committed to phasing out single-use plastics in the Maldives by 2023, as per the Parliament Resolution of 2019. The amendment to the Environmental Protection and Conservation Act has prohibited the import, manufacture, and marketing of single-use plastics as determined by President Solih.