Maldives and ADB
ADB supports Maldives in addressing its challenges as a small island developing state, improving fiscal management, building climate resilience, developing the private sector, and strengthening knowledge and institutional capacity.
Maldives joined ADB in 1978. The small island developing state is entitled to grants and concessional funding through the Asian Development Fund (ADF) and external financing through financial partners of ADB.
Sovereign operations. As of 31 December 2024, ADB has committed 121 public sector loans, grants, and technical assistance totaling 554ドル million to Maldives. ADB’s current sovereign portfolio in Maldives includes 5 loans and 10 grants worth 253ドル.26 million.
The Enhancing Climate Resilience and Food Security Project, approved in 2024, supports Maldives’ efforts to build climate resilience in island communities focusing on the interlinkages between human settlement and urban agri-food systems. It will enhance the country’s adaptation capacity in line with the Maldives Climate Change Policy Framework and nationally determined contributions. The project’s funding involves a 4ドル million concessional loan; and grants totaling 21ドル.95 million from the ADF, the Ocean Resilience and Coastal Adaptation Trust Fund (ORCA TF) and the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific (JFPR). ADB also extended 500,000ドル in technical assistance—supplemented by another 1ドル million grant from the ORCA TF—to facilitate scientific studies that aid policymakers and communities in identifying priority adaptation actions, support project implementation, and build institutional and community capacity.
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ADB also provided transaction advisory services in 2024 for a tender for the 14.7-megawatt land and rooftop grid-tied solar photovoltaic capacity for select islands. The tender is part of the 50ドル.5 million Accelerating Sustainable System Development Using Renewable Energy (ASSURE) Project that will install grid-scale energy storage, energy management systems, and distribution grid upgrades in 20 outer islands. Emerging technologies such as offshore floating solar are also part of the plan.
Maldives benefits from several regional technical assistance projects approved and committed by ADB in 2024.
The regional technical assistance on Support for Private Sector Development in South Asia will fund activities in several countries, including Maldives, to help identify impediments to private sector development (including policy constraints) and scope out opportunities to embed enabling components early at the project conceptualization and design stage.
As a small island developing state, Maldives depends heavily on trade as well as regional cooperation and integration. ADB approved the 1ドル.25 million regional technical assistance to operationalize regional cooperation and integration under the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) Program, of which Maldives is a member. The assistance will continue to support SASEC members’ capacity building and knowledge-sharing activities and policy dialogue for regional cooperation and integration initiatives.
Nonsovereign operations . Total outstanding balances and undisbursed commitments of ADB’s nonsovereign transactions in Maldives as of 31 December 2024 amounted to 29ドル.83 million, representing 0.23% of ADB’s total private sector portfolio.
Cumulative disbursements. Cumulative sovereign and nonsovereign loan and grant disbursements to Maldives amount to 371ドル million. These were financed by regular and concessional ordinary capital resources, ADF, and other special funds.
Operational challenges. Typical of small island nations, Maldives has a limited human resource pool that makes capacity constraints more challenging and affects the planning and implementation of some ADB-supported projects in the country. To address this, ADB has been extending technical assistance for strengthening the institutional capacity and skills of the government for country programming, interagency coordination, and portfolio management.
Maldives’ weak business environment, limited access to credit, and other obstacles for private sector development hinder opportunities for nonsovereign investments. ADB is helping the government in this area through technical assistance, loans, and grants.
In August 2024, ADB published Maldives’ Experience in Deploying Advanced Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems. It shows how other climate-vulnerable countries could install hybrid energy generation alongside advanced battery storage and management systems to improve their energy security, following the example set by ADB’s Preparing Outer Islands for Sustainable Energy Development Project.
ADB also supported the development of Maldives’ Road Map for the Energy Sector 2024–2033. The road map was launched in November 2024 at a side event titled Paving the Way for a Just Energy Transition in Maldives at the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Baku. It outlines the plan to achieve a 33% renewable energy share in the electricity sector by 2028, ensuring energy that is sufficient, reliable, sustainable, secure, and affordable. The road map also suggests ways to increase renewable energy use in other sectors.
As part of a JFPR-cofinanced technical assistance project to strengthen the resilience and capacity of Maldives’ health system, ADB partnered with the World Health Organization to produce a Mass Casualty Management Guideline and Emergency Medical Services Protocols for the country.
ADB Projects in Maldives Project data sheets for loans, grants, TAs
Number of Shares Held
426 (0.004% of total shares)
Votes
38,973 (0.293% of total membership, 0.451% of total regional membership)
*Overall capital subscription
5ドル.56 million
*Paid-in capital subscription
274,000ドル
* United States dollar figures are valued at rate as of 31 December 2024.
ADB Governor: Moosa Zameer
ADB Alternate Governor: Zidna Ibrahim
ADB Director: Justine Sicat (Philippines)
ADB Alternate Director: Noor Ahmed (Pakistan)
ADB Director’s Advisors: Juvy Danofrata (Philippines) and Ali Irufan (Maldives)
Financing partnerships enable ADB’s financing partner governments or their agencies, multilateral financing institutions, and private organizations to participate in financing ADB projects. The additional funds provided may be in the form of loans and grants, technical assistance, and nonsovereign cofinancing.
Cumulative cofinancing commitments in Maldives:
In 2024, Maldives received 3ドル million in grant cofinancing from the JFPR, and 1ドル million in grant cofinancing from the ORCA TF for the Enhancing Climate Resilience and Food Security Project.
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ADB is preparing a new partnership strategy for Maldives covering 2025–2029 that remains aligned with ADB’s Strategy 2030 and the government’s plan and policies. ADB’s support to Maldives will focus on energy, public sector management, climate change mitigation and adaptation, industry and trade, and private sector development.
The majority of ADB’s assistance for the longer term will focus on investments in renewable energy and enhancing fiscal sustainability. The bank envisions investments in other sectors and themes that can help address Maldives’ most pressing development needs and challenges. ADB’s support across sectors and themes will contribute to Maldives’ achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and other global commitments such as the nationally determined contributions.
This article was originally published in the ADB and Maldives: Fact Sheet. Updated yearly, this ADB Fact Sheet provides concise information on ADB's operations in the country and contact information.
Last updated: 2 May 2025
Maldives Coordination Office
Asian Development Bank
ADB South Asia Department - Regional Cooperation and Integration Unit
6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines
Tel: +632 8632 4444
Fax: +63 2 8636 2444
Ministry of Finance
Ameenee Magu
Block 379 Malé, Republic of Maldives
Tel: +960 334 9200
E-mail
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