Tourism Minister Ibrahim Faisal has revealed that Indian social media influencers and celebrities will be recruited to promote Maldivian tourism on social media.

Maldives is a popular destination among Indian celebrities with many Bollywood stars having already spent their holidays the Maldives. A-list Bollywood celebrities are often found frequenting the famous resorts of the country.

Speaking at a press conference held at the MMPRC today, Minister Faisal said the Indian market is very important for Maldives' tourism.

The minister said he had the opportunity to meet the Indian Tourism Minister and Civil Aviation Minister during the roadshow in India. They discussed ways to increase the number of Indian tourists coming to the Maldives, and bringing investments to the country as well.

The minister said the aim is to make India Maldives' third largest tourist source market by the end of this year. Some 71,000 Indian tourists have visited the Maldives so far this year.

The minister said that an investment forum is being held in India this year with the main objective of bringing high-end resorts to the area by the time the Hanimaadhoo International Airport is developed.

"Besides, the work of bringing influencers and celebrities to the Maldives is also going on very extensively. Some of the celebrities we are talking to have 40 million, 50 million, 60 million followers," the Minister stated.

The minister said the Indian Foreign Minister will visit the Maldives next week and that will further improve relations between the Maldives and India.

The minister added that the target is to bring in one million tourists from India by the end of these five years.