he General Committee of the People's Majlis has decided to allocate 15 minutes for each member of parliament to speak during the debate on the state budget proposed by the government for the upcoming year 2026.

Under Article 235(b) of the People's Majlis Rules of Procedure, the committee has also decided to allocate a total of 45 minutes to the Finance Minister to respond to points raised by members during the debate, as determined by the Speaker of the People's Majlis.

Additionally, the committee has approved allocating one 7-minute opportunity for each member during the debate phase on the committee report after the Budget Committee reviews the budget and submits it to the floor of the parliament.

The government submitted a budget of MVR 64 billion for the coming year to the People's Majlis last Thursday.

"The budget proposed for the 2026 fiscal year is MVR 64,202,565,720 (sixty-four billion, two hundred and two million, five hundred and sixty-five thousand, seven hundred and twenty). Without the MVR 9.3 billion included in this budget for repayment of sukuk and bonds, next year's budget is MVR 55 billion," Finance Minister Moosa Zameer said while presenting the budget statement to the parliament.

Minister Zameer said this is an increase in the budget due to higher debt repayment costs, as the government is scheduled to repay a USD 500 million sukuk issued by the government in 2021, as well as a USD 100 million bond issued earlier.

The Minister also noted that without the cost of repaying the sukuk and bonds inherited by this government, this budget is smaller than the current 2025 budget.

However, he said that as debt repayment costs are expected to decrease in the medium term, the state budget is projected to decrease to MVR 56.8 billion in 2027 and MVR 57.0 billion in 2028.

Of the budget proposed for next year, MVR 39.9 billion or 62 percent is allocated for recurrent expenditure. The Minister said this includes salary increases and harmonization for a large number of government employees after many years. The capital expenditure for next year is MVR 9.3 billion.

Tax revenue for the coming year is estimated at MVR 31.3 billion. Non-tax revenue is projected at MVR 8.7 billion.

With MVR 373.6 million expected in grants, the total revenue and grants for the state by the end of 2026 is estimated at MVR 40.3 billion.

This is 6.6 percent more than the total revenue and grants currently estimated for the state this year.

"Additionally, the new terminal at Velana International Airport, which opened this year, will be fully operational next year, regional airports will be further developed, and tourism is expected to expand throughout the Maldives. This is expected to boost TGST, Green Tax, airport taxes and fees. With the increase in tourists visiting the Maldives, the full impact of the higher rate of airport development fees will be seen during next year, with an estimated MVR 2.3 billion to be collected in airport development fees," the Finance Minister said.

After the budget was submitted to the parliament, it has been forwarded to the Budget Committee for further review.