President His Excellency Dr Mohamed Muizzu recognised the need for increased productivity and capacity building to achieve long-term, inclusive economic growth at the Maldives' side event, "Building Productive Capacities in Small Island Developing States (SIDS)," at the UN.

Speaking at the event, the President acknowledged the Maldives' progress from a low-income to an upper-middle-income country, primarily due to the growth of the tourism sector. He further highlighted the challenges to overcoming the middle-income trap. To address this, President Muizzu called upon the international community to assist SIDS in diversifying their economies and expanding their productive capacity frameworks.

In his statement, the President proposed three key strategies to achieve the Ten-Year Programme of Action outlined in the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAs).

These strategies include:

• Technological Advancement: The President reaffirmed the Maldives’ commitment to facilitating access to global payment gateways, ensuring that the country is fully integrated into the global market.
• Resilient Infrastructure: The President revealed the Maldives' initiatives to upgrade infrastructure across key sectors, including transportation, energy, and digital connectivity, in order to access global supply chains and attract new investments.
• Evidence-Based Policy: This includes the Productive Capacities Index developed by UNCTAD. The President urged development partners to provide financial support for tools that help make informed policy decisions and drive economic change. He also invited UNCTAD and other relevant UN agencies to collaborate with the Maldives to identify country-specific policy interventions to boost productivity.

President Dr Muizzu concluded his keynote address by inviting panellists to recommend actionable steps for improving productive capacities and fostering innovation.

This side event was co-hosted by the Maldives, in collaboration with St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Source: https://presidency.gov.mv/Press/Article/31666