By According to Mohamed Khaleel, the President’s Special Advisor and a tourism industry businessman, the Tourism Ministry and the Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) are now working much more closely as a single team to improve the tourism sector.
Khaleel stated this during a press conference held at the MMPRC today, noting that previously the two entities often operated as separate entities without much coordination.
“I’m very pleased to see that the MMPRC and the Tourism Ministry are now working much more closely as a single team, compared to how it was before,” Khaleel said.
He explained that the policies of the two organizations are now aligned, allowing them to work as a unified team towards common goals. Khaleel emphasized the importance of the entire tourism industry working together to address the sector’s challenges.
Khaleel identified the main challenge facing the tourism industry as declining revenue despite increasing tourist arrivals, which he attributed to lower room rates at resorts. He stated that the government is a major beneficiary of the tourism industry through direct revenue.
Khaleel said the Tourism Ministry and MMPRC should focus on increasing demand and tourist arrivals, as well as developing policies to raise the average daily room rate.