Minister of Tourism Ibrahim Faisal has stated that the introduction of bilateral currency transactions between the Maldives and China will lead to a significant increase in Chinese tourists visiting the Maldives.
The Maldives and the People's Bank of China (PBOC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to facilitate current account transactions and direct investments in their respective currencies. The agreement is expected to reduce reliance on the US dollar and strengthen the Maldivian Rufiyaa.
In a social media post, Minister Faisal highlighted that China is the Maldives' largest source of tourists and that many tourism-related trade deals are conducted with China. He also emphasied that the use of both currencies will further boost tourist numbers and greatly benefit the entire tourism sector.
The latest statistics released by the Ministry of Tourism show that the tourist arrivals in the Maldives have reached 1.4 million this year, with China contributing the largest share. So far, 204,832 Chinese tourists have visited the Maldives in 2024.