Daily Time
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed aviation authorities to work out arrangements for direct flights between Pakistan and the Maldives in his address at the Pakistan-Maldives Business Forum in Islamabad, a day after the two countries exchanged 20 memorandums of understanding and agreed to raise bilateral trade from approximately $13 million to $200 million within two years.
The proposed trade target represents a fifteenfold increase in just two years. That is a tall order by any reckoning. Still, the government’s decision to put economic cooperation at the centre of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s visit is a welcome departure from the usual exchange of diplomatic pleasantries. Pakistan has considerable ground to make up in cultivating smaller South Asian economies, particularly those whose commercial requirements offer opportunities for its struggling export sector.
The possibilities are hardly difficult to identify. The Maldives welcomed nearly 2.25 million tourists last year, supporting a hospitality industry heavily dependent on imported food, construction materials and consumer goods. Pakistan can supply many of these products. President Muizzu’s description of food security as a national security concern for his island nation was particularly telling, especially in light of his interest in Pakistani agricultural produce and food processing.
Nonetheless, those at the helm would do well to remember that commercial ambitions will amount to little without reliable transport links. Perishable goods require regular shipping schedules and competitive freight rates. Without direct maritime connections, Pakistani exporters would struggle to compete with established suppliers. Prime Minister Shehbaz has rightly acknowledged the importance of connecting Karachi or Gwadar with Malé.
Healthcare and education offer further room for manoeuvre. Pakistan has long contributed to Maldivian medical training, and the announcement of 20 additional undergraduate scholarships annually should strengthen these ties. Cooperation in pharmaceuticals and specialised healthcare could pay handsome dividends, especially given the difficulties of providing services across the Maldives’ scattered islands.
The diplomatic calculation should not be lost sight of either. The Maldives occupies a strategically important position in the Indian Ocean and maintains close relationships with India, China and other regional powers. Islamabad would do well to cultivate Malé on its own merits rather than make the relationship another casualty of South Asia’s rivalries. With SAARC gathering dust for over a decade, meaningful bilateral cooperation offers one way of keeping regional engagement alive.
President Muizzu’s visit, the first by a Maldivian head of state in 11 years, has brought the relationship back into focus. The government’s plan to send officials and businessmen to Malé shortly afterwards suggests an intention to strike while the iron is hot. Yet memorandums have a habit of multiplying while implementation remains stuck in official files.
Pakistan and the Maldives have never lacked diplomatic warmth. What has been missing is the sustained attention needed to make the relationship commercially worthwhile. The latest announcements offer a chance to put that right. It would be a pity if, two years down the road, both countries were still working out how to establish a regular direct flight. *