Muizzu pledges to launch MVR 100M loan scheme for women-led startups

Dr Mohamed Muizzu, PPM, PNC’s presidential candidate, has said last night that he will introduce a loan scheme of MVR 100 million in order for women to have the opportunity to start their own businesses.

Speaking in Hithadhoo, Addu City, last night, Muizzu said that women, youth, and fishermen are a very high priority in his manifesto.

He said that with the introduction of a loan scheme aimed especially for women would make it easier for women to start their own businesses.

“It is a startup loan scheme that is especially for women. God willing, we will give women opportunities to start small businesses with the loan,” Muizzu said.

In addition to this, he pledged to establish markets in all cities in the Maldives for the different products created by women, and that he will create women's cooperatives in order to manage these markets.

“Women will be at the stall in these markets, it will be 100 percent a women’s business. Foreigners cannot be in these markets.”

Muizzu further said that while women drop their children off at daycares when they go to work, he highlighted that those places are neglected by the government.

He also pledged that those places will be updated and modernised if he is elected. The government will provide financial assistance to these places to develop daycare centres and facilitate the establishment of more daycare centres, he said.

“Then women who live alone can go to work without worry with their children safely in daycare centres,” he said”

In addition, mentioning domestic violence, Muizzu said that both men and women have to face it. He said such things happen very often in the Maldives.

Muizzu also said that these things need to be stopped.

“We have ministries, we have offices. However, it will be our policy to establish a national centre for this purpose,” Muizzu said.

“Therefore, a special national centre will be established to prevent domestic violence and educate on how to proceed after it happens in order to establish a compassionate caring society.”

When these things are done, a safe society can be established, he said, and, women can be made self-sufficient.

Muizzu also pledged to make online payment systems, such as PayPal, available in the Maldives during his term.

He further said that the payment systems that will be changed including PayPal, Payoneer, Stripe, Skrill, and Neteller, will be made available to the businesses in the Maldives.

In addition, he highlighted that global e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Shopify, Shoppy and Lazada users cannot create seller accounts in the Maldives.

He said he would make legal changes to allow seller accounts to be created on such platforms