FNSt has no project office in Maldives but is cooperating with the MNCCI - Maldives National Chamber of Commerce and Industry - , which is a member of our regional partner, the SCCI, SAARC Chamber of Commerce & Industry.








Country Profile



OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Maldives

CAPITAL: Male

GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION: Maldives has a small land area of 115 sq miles (298 sq km) but its Exclusive Economic Zone covers 859, 000 sq km; the average land-sea ratio is about 1:300. It does not have land-based natural resources, rivers and streams. Land suitable for cultivation is only 30 sq. km; it is roughly equivalent to 110 sq. metre per person. The atolls vary in shape from circular, oval and elliptical to pear; they have sandy beaches and lagoons. Lagoon waters vary in depth from 40 to 60 metre; channels passing through some of the atoll margin are as deep as the lagoon itself. Lagoons contain patch reefs, knolls, micro-atolls and faros that are ring-shaped, a unique feature of atolls of Maldives.



TIMELINE

12th century - Islam introduced.

1558-1573 - Portuguese occupation, which ends after expulsion by locals.

17th century - Islands become a protectorate first of the Dutch rulers of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and later of the British who take control of Ceylon in 1796.

1887 - Status formalised as internally self-governing British protectorate.

1932 - First democratic constitution proclaimed. The sultanate becomes an elected position.

1953 - Becomes a republic within the Commonwealth as the sultanate is abolished. However, the Sultan is restored within months.

1965 - Full independence as a sultanate outside Commonwealth.

1968 - Sultan deposed after referendum; republic reinstated with Ibrahim Nasir as president.

1978 - Nasir retires, replaced by Maumoon Abd al-Gayoom.

1980 - Development of tourist industry fuels economic growth.

1982 - Rejoins Commonwealth.

1988 - Coup attempt involving Sri Lankan mercenaries foiled with the help of Indian commandos.

1998 - Gayoom re-elected for a fifth term in presidential referendum.

1999 November - Parliamentary elections take place, with more than 120 independent candidates contesting 40 seats.

2000 January - Amnesty International says three candidates in 1999 parliamentary elections were tortured after being detained on suspicion of instigating unrest.

2002 March - Concern over the Maldives' vulnerability to rising sea levels prompts government to announce decision to take legal action against US for refusing to sign Kyoto Protocol.

2002 September - At World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, President Gayoom warns that low-lying islands are at greater risk than ever before, and calls on international community to take urgent action to prevent global environmental catastrophe.

2003 July - Amnesty International accuses Maldives government of political repression and torture. It publishes a report saying that arbitrary detentions, unfair trials and long-term imprisonment of government critics are commonplace. The government rejects the allegations as "false and baseless".

2003 September - Anti-government riots break out in the capital Male after the deaths of two inmates in a prison disturbance. Two other prisoners later also die of their injuries. Opposition sources say hundreds of people are detained in connection with the protests.

2003 October - Gayoom re-elected for unprecedented sixth term in presidential referendum, winning more than 90% of the vote.

Source: BBC News



for more information about Maldives:

www.gksoft.com/govt/en/mv.html
www.presidencymaldives.gov.mv/v3/