President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has emphasised that sustainability and development should be promoted in the Maldives through new innovations and creativity. He made the statement in a social media post on the occasion of the World Creativity and Innovation Day.
The World Creativity and Innovation Day is celebrated by the United Nations to raise awareness of the role of creativity and innovation in advancing human development.
In his message, the President said the Maldives should strive to build a nation where every child is empowered to realise their dreams, and where artists and creators are able to flourish and meaningfully contribute to the advancement of the nation. He urged the public to promote innovation and creativity to achieve sustainability and progress in building the nation.
“On this World Creativity and Innovation Day, let us aim to build a Maldives where every child has the opportunity to fulfil their dreams, every artist can thrive vibrantly, and every creator can contribute to shape a promising future. Let creativity and innovation propel the sustainability and advancement of our beloved Maldives,” the President stated.
Building a creative and productive generation in the Maldives and providing them with income-generating opportunities is a key policy of the government. While the government has launched a roadmap for a creative economy last year as part off this commitment, efforts are also underway to establish a supportive environment for creative industries, and enabling the generation of income for Maldivians creators in foreign markets.
Under these efforts, discussions on introducing PayPal services which are currently unavailable in the Maldives have taken place between the government and the company. Additionally, a visiting delegation from TikTok recently met with senior officials from the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and discussed new avenues for digital monetisation or revenue generation through content shared on the platform.
Establishing a creator economy in the Maldives is a presidential pledge of President Muizzu. The government is exploring ways for content creators to generate revenue through online platforms. Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed also noted that there is a growing number of online content creators in the Maldives who could benefit from such opportunities.