Shakeel: Hajj Corporation will not proceed with guesthouse venture as advised

Maldives Hajj Corporation’s Managing Director Mohamed Shakeel states the company will not proceed with its plan to venture into the guesthouse business in line with recommendations of Finance Minister Moosa Zameer who advised against it yesterday, citing it would yield no positive outcome.

Shakeel announced the company’s decision to venture into the guesthouse business by developing a city hotel in K. Maafushi under the halal tourism model in a bid to transform the company into a profitable business back in November.

Finance Minister Moosa Zameer appeared before the Parliament on Tuesday to answer questions from lawmakers during which he was asked regarding the outcome once Hajj Corporation enters the guesthouse business.

In response, the Minister said the company’s directors and shareholders should reconsider their decision to venture into the guesthouse business, adding there would be no positive outcome if all state-owned companies were to engage in such businesses.

When questioned regarding the matter by Sun, Shakeel said the company was in discussions with the government regarding the matter. He noted that Hajj Corporation was wholly owned by the government, thus, its shareholder, would be the Finance Ministry.

“This, if Finance Ministry advises this way, we will follow the Finance Ministry’s advice; the Finance Ministry’s instructions. There is no question with respect to this,” he stressed.

Efforts to make Hajj Corporation a profitable business stem from the fact that the company presently escorts pilgrims to Hajj at a loss.

The current price for Hajj was fixed in 2013 at MVR 69,965. With the hike in the prices of goods, airline tickets and accommodation among other things since then, some MVR 100,000 is incurred by the Hajj Corporation to escort pilgrims to Hajj at present.

Thus, Shakeel underscored the need to transform Hajj Corporation into a company that profits in order to reduce the price of Hajj. In this trajectory, he revealed the company’s decision to invest in business with light risks for which efforts are currently being undertaken.