The state has spent MVR 9.5 million on loan repayments and financing and interest costs, according to the latest data available from the Finance Ministry.
The Maldives has been facing higher and higher interest rates as it defers its loan repayments.
According to the latest weekly fiscal developments report released by the Finance Ministry on Wednesday, the state received MVR 36 million in revenue and grants, but spent MVR 37.9 billion as of December 11.
MVR 4.4 billion was spent on refinancing loans and paying interest. This is lower than the MVR 5.5 billion budget allocation for financing and interest costs for this year, but consistent with the MVR 4.5 billion spent on this last year.
The state spent another MVR 5.1 billion on loan repayments. This is in excess of the budgeted MVR 3.8 billion by MVR 1.2 billion, and also higher than last year’s loan repayment of MVR 2.3 billion by 2.2 billion.
Therefore, the state has spent MVR 9.5 billion so far this year on loan repayments and on financing and interest costs. This accounts for 25 percent of the revenue earned by the state this year, and is also higher than the total spending on Public Sector Investment Program (PSIP) projects by MVR 2 billion.
The Maldives has an even higher amount due in debt repayments next year.
The country has a staggering USD 1.1 billion in debt repayments due in 2026, including a USD 500 million block payment.
Citing default risks, Moody’s has downgraded Maldives’ credit rating from CAA1 to CAA2, while Fitch downgraded the country’s credit rating from CCC+ to CC.
The World Bank has warned the situation makes it harder for the Maldives to secure foreign assistance to alleviate the crisis it faces.