Ministry of Finance revealed that MVR 4.5 billion was added to the national debt.
According to the report during the first six months of 2019, there was an increase in guarantors granted by the government by 14%.
In addition to this, international debt increased by 5% after the government received foreign loans for the development of Velana International Airport and internal debts increased by 7% due to sales of treasury bills (T-Bills).
The government sold USD 100 million to State Bank of India (SBI) in T-Bills and it was agreed that the money received from the sales was agreed to be given to India as free aid. An additional USD 50 million is said to be sold as T-bills.
This is an increase of 5% in national debt compared to the first half of last year. The current national debt is at MVR 49 billion, which is 61.3% in terms of GDP. With the inclusion of loan guarantors, the figure increases to 64.9%.
In international standards, as a developing country, it is ideal to maintain national debt at 60 percent.
