Malé, Maldives – Minister of Tourism, Dr. Abdullah Mausoom stated that ‘3-V’ tourism, which encourages tourists to “visit, vaccinate, vacation” will be introduced in Maldives this year.
The Tourism Minister said this during an interview with CNBC but did not provide a timeline for the visitor vaccination rollout.
Minister Mausoom also said that guests are booking longer stays, with many using the luxury resorts for ‘workations’ or a working vacation. He is hopeful that the trend will continue, with tourists staying to receive both their first and second doses.
Maldives will start providing vaccinations for tourists once the eligible resident population of the country is vaccinated.
Around 53% of resident population have received their first dose, including 90% of tourism industry staff.
I don’t think [Covid-19 vaccine] supply is a problem in Maldives because our population is relatively small.
Maldives Tourism Minister Mausoom
Minister Mausoom did not state whether arrivals would be expected to pay for their shot.
Maldives received vaccine donations from India, China, and the World Health Organization’s Covax facility. The country has currently approved Covishield, Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine and Pfizer vaccine for emergency use.
Maldives has also ordered additional vaccines from Singapore. The Tourism Minister said that the quota from international organizations and friendly nations will help vaccinate the resident population.
This campaign is part of the efforts to make the Maldives a more safe destination for tourists. The inoculation program in the Maldives began on the 1 February 2021 with the launch of the nationwide Covid-19 “Dhifaau” vaccine campaign.
Maldives aims to become one of the first countries to have a 100 percent vaccinated tourism sector and entire resident population. To this end, the country is also vaccinating the migrant population regardless of documentation status.
At present, tourists must provide a negative PCR test and proof of hotel booking to gain entry to Maldives. However, the Tourism Minister said that the Health Protection Agency (HPA) will make an announcement on restriction-free entry to vaccinated arrivals very soon.
