The Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources has disclosed that the government has disbursed USD36 million to fishermen so far, with efforts underway to promptly settle outstanding payments. Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company Limited (MIFCO) has recently allocated USD7 million to fishermen over the past six days as part of the initiative.
The fisheries ministry stated that President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, through relevant agencies, is engaged in ensuring the timely disbursement of outstanding dues to fishermen. MIFCO, on February 26 alone, transferred USD2.2 million, contributing to the total sum of USD7 million disbursed to date.
Moreover, the ministry is working to streamline the process for clearing the backlog of payments owed to fishermen. Since November of the previous year, a total of USD36 million has been distributed to fishermen. The government has previously committed to settling all outstanding payments by March 5.
The previous government raised the purchase price of fish from USD1.1 per kg to USD1.6 per kg. However, following a review of purchase prices from MIFCO, the current government has revised the price to USD1.3 per kg, resulting in USD16 million remaining unpaid to fishermen. The decision was reached after deliberations within the Economic Council.