President will not allow Maldives to falter amid economic challenges: Saeed

President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has demonstrated his ability to steer the Maldives through economic difficulties and changing global conditions, Minister of Economic Development, Transport and Trade Mohamed Saeed has said.
In remarks highlighting the government’s ongoing economic initiatives, Saeed pointed to the development of the new commercial port in Thilafushi as an example of what he described as the administration’s efforts to address longstanding structural challenges.
The minister said modernising the country’s main commercial port is critical to economic growth, arguing that improved infrastructure would allow goods to be handled more quickly and make trade and logistics more efficient.
According to Saeed, successive governments have discussed expanding or relocating the country’s principal commercial harbour for decades, but the existing facility in Malé has continued to operate under severe space constraints.
He credited President Muizzu with moving the proposal into implementation, saying the administration is pursuing practical solutions to issues that have remained unresolved for years.
Saeed said the President’s approach to the port project reflects what he described as a broader ability to confront economic difficulties at a time when the Maldives is facing significant financial pressures as well as uncertainty in the global economy.
The government is currently developing a new commercial port in Thilafushi to replace the existing Malé Commercial Harbour. The project is being implemented by Maldives Ports Limited (MPL), with the relocation targeted for November 2027.
The planned port is expected to cover around 60 hectares and bring together international cargo handling, domestic cargo operations, warehousing, logistics and other trade-related services in Thilafushi.
Plans include a deep-water container terminal, a multipurpose cargo terminal, a domestic cargo terminal and an inter-atoll warehousing zone, alongside bonded facilities and supporting infrastructure.
Work on key components of the project has already begun. MPL awarded construction of the international and domestic quay walls in July, including a 375-metre international quay designed for container vessels and an 820-metre domestic quay for vessels transporting cargo between islands.
The government has said the relocation is intended to overcome capacity limitations at Malé Commercial Harbour, where restricted space has created challenges for cargo handling, storage and the movement of containers.
Moving the port is also expected to reduce the volume of heavy cargo traffic entering central Malé and allow warehousing and other logistics activities to be concentrated in Thilafushi, which serves as the Greater Malé region’s principal industrial island.
MPL has already expanded operations in Thilafushi ahead of the full relocation. An empty-container depot has been developed on the island with capacity for approximately 3,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, while trial vessel operations have also been carried out.
The government has said the new port will remain under Maldivian ownership and control. Authorities have presented the development as both a trade infrastructure project and part of a wider effort to strengthen the resilience and efficiency of the country’s supply chain.
The current Thilafushi plan follows previous attempts to relocate Malé’s commercial harbour. Under the former administration, a new port had been planned for Gulhifalhu, with reclamation undertaken as part of preparations for the development. The Muizzu administration subsequently shifted the planned commercial port to Thilafushi.
Saeed said addressing major obstacles rather than postponing difficult decisions is a central responsibility of national leadership.
He maintained that Muizzu’s handling of the port development and other economic challenges demonstrates the government’s determination to pursue structural changes despite the difficult economic environment.