Maldives tourism hit: Controversial tweets by Maldives ministers in opposition to PM Modi sparked a name by some Indians on social media to boycott the Maldives
| Photo Credit: ISHARA S. KODIKARA
In January, controversial tweets by deputy ministers of the Maldives on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s go to to Lakshadweep led to a diplomatic row between the 2 nations. The penalties of this row have been two-fold. The tweets sparked a name by some Indians on social media to boycott the Maldives. This was an try by them to puncture the largest money-maker for the Maldives, the tourism trade. Meanwhile, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu strengthened ties with one among India’s rivals, China. Just a number of days after tensions between the Maldives and India flared up, Mr. Muizzu visited China, met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and appealed to Chinese vacationers to go to his nation in massive numbers and reclaim the highest spot in vacationer arrivals, which they as soon as held.
Chart 1 | The chart exhibits the variety of vacationers who visited the Maldives in the primary 35 days of 2023 and 2024.
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While the variety of Indian vacationers visiting the Maldives has declined marginally, Chinese vacationers have swifty stuffed this hole, ensuing in an general enhance in vacationer inflows, information present. The variety of Indians who visited the archipelago dropped marginally from 21,460 to 16,895 in the interval thought of. It is vital to be aware that the decline can’t be totally attributed to the boycott name as a substantial share might also have dropped their plans fearing repercussions of the continuing row, amongst different causes. Moreover, the variety of Russian vacationers additionally decreased from 26,305 to 22,577 in the interval, so India shouldn’t be an outlier.
Also learn: Indian vacationers’ boycott name publish Modi go to to Lakshadweep could impression Maldives | Data
The decline in Indian guests didn’t have an effect on the general variety of vacationers to the Maldives. In reality, if the primary 35 days of 2023 and 2024 are in contrast, the variety of vacationers went up barely from 1,97,252 to 2,22,502. This enhance is totally due to the sudden surge in the variety of Chinese vacationers from simply 6,563 to 25,303 in the interval.
Chart 2 | The chart exhibits the variety of medical vacationers from the Maldives who visited India for therapies.
More worryingly, the impression of the diplomatic fallout has been felt by extra than simply the tourism trade. Generally, 20,000 to 40,000 medical vacationers from the Maldives go to India yearly for therapy (Chart 2). On January 13, Mr. Muizzu introduced that the federal government’s medical insurance scheme will cowl visits to the UAE and Thailand too, to “diminish reliance on a select group of countries”. He made this announcement instantly after his return from China. He additionally stated {that a} 100-bed hospital with Chinese assist can be constructed.
Mr. Muizzu and Mr. Xi signed key agreements, together with agricultural schemes that may “end its [Maldives’] dependence on one country for imported staple foods such as rice, sugar, and flour,” by rising them domestically. Currently, the Maldives depends closely on India for quite a few merchandise.
Chart 3 | The chart exhibits the worth of commodities imported by the Maldives from India, between 2019 and 2021, in $ (vertical axis). On the horizontal axis, India’s share (%) in the Maldives’s whole imports, throughout commodities is depicted.
The Maldives imports over 95% of its granite, 40% of its metal bars and coils, over 30% of tubes/pipes, electrical motors and cement, 65% of flat-rolled iron and chrome steel sheets, and over 50% of bulldozers from India (Chart 3). Moreover, it sources over 80% of rice, 60% of eggs, shut to 30% of cattle meat, 50% of onions, melons and nuts, 25% of wheat, over 45% of crabs/shrimp/prawns and cabbages, and 40% of tomatoes from India. Essentially, the tourism increase in the Maldives — from meals to keep — depends closely on the provision of uncooked supplies from India.
Chart 4 | The chart exhibits the worth of commodities exported by India to the Maldives in $ (vertical axis) and the Maldives’s share in India’s whole exports (horizontal axis).
India exports 70% of its cabbages/cauliflowers, over 20% of eggs, over 10% of its melons and reside animals and nuts to the Maldives. The archipelago’s key agreements with China after the fallout with India threatens this mutually helpful relationship, and provides China extra sway in the Indian Ocean area.
Source: UNcomtrade portal, India Tourism Statistics, Republic of Maldives’s Ministry of Tourism
vignesh.r@thehindu.co.in, sonikka.l@thehindu.co.in
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