Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts, Ibrahim Waheed has announced that the government will begin issuing financial assistance to artists under a new support scheme.
The Minister made the announcement while speaking on the ‘Ahaa Forum’, a public engagement programme aimed at facilitating direct interaction between government officials and the public.
Speaking at the forum, Minister Waheed said as decided by President Dr Mohamed Muizzu, the government will extend financial assistance to artists to support and promote their work. The government will begin issuing funds under the initiative starting next month, he said.
Describing the President’s decision as an important government policy, Minister Waheed said several efforts are ongoing to finalise the scheme’s implementation. While the necessary policies have already been developed, feedback and opinion from the artistic community were considered in formulating of these policies, he said. He further noted that the regulations required for the operation of the scheme are now being drafted.
The Minister expressed hope that the financial assistance will be given to eligible artists from next month. Professionals who require financial assistance can apply through a dedicated portal, he said.
"The Ministry has now decided to provide this assistance through a portal. It will take some time to build the portal, fix any bugs, and test it. If we do not run into these issues, we can provide the assistance as scheduled,” the Minister said.
Minister Waheed further said the production house, dedicated for artists, is already under construction. The facility is being developed by the Business Centre Corporation (BCC), and work is expected to reach completion and open for artists use within this year, he said.