The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed between the Maldives and China will be detrimental to the Maldives, opposing Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Chairman Fayyaz Ismail has said.
Speaking at a ceremony held to mark the Independence Day, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu announced that the FTA between Maldives and China would come into effect in September.
At a panel discussion titled βHavaru Beruβ organized by the MDP yesterday, Fayyaz said the FTA would primarily benefit China. Noting that Maldives is heavily reliant on imported goods, Fayyaz said that with the FTA, Chinese goods will not be subject to duty, forcing local businessmen to rely solely on China for imports.
βWhen we sign an FTA to export fish to China, we lose duty on thousands of Chinese goods,β former Economic Minister Fayyaz said.
Fayyaz warned that the FTA would also undermine the long-standing trade relationships established by local businessmen over the years.
