Economic Minister Mohamed Saeed has defended the government's handling of rising commodity costs and foreign currency availability while responding to a no-confidence motion in the People's Majlis.
Saeed said the volume of foreign currency released through official channels at the rate of MVR 15.42 has increased substantially since the administration took office. He presented figures showing an 80 percent rise compared with the previous three years, describing the total as approaching USD 1.94 billion.
Addressing higher prices of goods, he pointed to limited capacity at the Male' Commercial Harbour as a bottleneck for imports and said the current government is advancing the relocation of the port to Thilafushi. He also noted steps to increase strategic reserves of essential commodities in response to global price volatility.
The minister rejected claims that the administration had failed to manage the economy effectively and contrasted the figures with those of the previous government.
