The Sovereign Development Fund (SDF) has received USD 84.3 million in deposits so far this year, statistics from the Ministry of Finance and Public Enterprises show.
The Ministry's latest Weekly Fiscal Development report shows that deposits into the SDF reached USD 84.3 million between 1 January and 13 August this year.
Alongside the deposits, Government spending on debt repayment also increased during the period. The Government spent USD 629.1 million on repaying loans so far this year, compared with USD 252.9 million during the same period last year.
The Government also used the SDF to repay a USD 500 million loan this year.
The Government established the Sovereign Development Fund to address unexpected circumstances, repay large loans taken for various development projects and cushion the economy against losses arising from economic shocks. The fund operates separately from the reserves of the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA), the country's central bank.
Established in 2016, SDF receives Government revenue from three sources. These include revenue from the Airport Development Fee collected from departing passengers, dividends from the profits of MACL, which operates Velana International Airport, and additional revenue generated by increasing fees for certain airport services.