Maldives Tourism Master Plan Maldives

What

Scott Wayne was commissioned by ADB to be the Team Leader to guide a team of nine local Maldivian experts through the process of developing the Fifth National Tourism Master Plan for the country.

With the Ministry of Tourism’s current Vision Statement and the broader Government’s Strategic Action Plan (SAP) of 2019-2023, the Government set ambitious goals and targets for tourism development. 

  • 20% increase in main and new markets (pre-COVID target)
  • At least 30,000 have benefited from the Tourism Training Fund
  • 35,000 new tourist beds
  • Website operational with 50% of island guest houses on the site.
  • 60% of registered SMEs h50 tourism SMEs adopted green Save received business training
  • SME initiatives
  • A cost-effective and suitable payment gateway exists for SMEs to do business internationally.

The other team members included:

  • Tourism policy, Simad Saeed
  • Environment planner, Ahmed Shaig
  • Human resources development, Mohamed Amjad
  • Sociocultural development, Nashiya Saeed
  • Tourism marketing, product development, and innovation, Aneil Bedi
  • Tourism business development and economic planning, Ahmed Munawar
  • Legal consultant, Shabab Rasheed
  • Marine and safari vessels consultant, Mareer Husny
  • Tourism security consultant, Aly Naashid

The Fifth Tourism Master Plan (5TMP) provides the vision, policy priorities, and strategies for the tourism industry and the government. Having a
robust national tourism master plan that prioritises travel and tourism across all sectors of the economy sets the strategic direction for stakeholders over the
2023–2027 plan period. Bringing them and the government together will be vital for ensuring the industry’s continued success.

5TMP identifies the tourism industry’s challenges and opportunities. It focuses on the long term, addressing existing challenges, community
expectations, new opportunities, and emerging trends to ensure the industry is resilient, innovative, and competitive. 5TMP will be delivered through the
engagement and action of all industry stakeholders, the whole of government, and at all levels (i.e., island, atoll, and nationally). 5TMP will be reviewed in late 2025 to check on the progress made against the targets set, and to design the priority actions for the rest of the plan period.