The Minister noted that before the Covid 19 pandemic, the highest number of tourist arrivals to Maldives used to be from China.
Faisal, who is part of the high level ministerial delegation currently accompanying President Dr Mohamed Muizzu on his official state visit to China, stated that the plan is to introduce direct flights to Maldives from various provinces of China.
"We have already received confirmation from one airline that they will conduct direct flights to Maldives. I have also met with the Commerce Minister of China. I will also be meeting the Tourism Minister. I believe that after holding discussions with them, we will be able to introduce direct flights to Maldives. I am hopeful that we can do this," Faisal said.
"The biggest issue we face is that of pricing. So if we can work with the local airlines and provide a good pricing, we can increase tourist arrivals at an even greater level than expected." Faisal noted that as the Chinese New Year is approaching, higher tourist arrivals can be expected if the appropriate efforts can be made. The Minister's aim is to increase tourist arrivals from China 40 percent higher than it was pre-Covid.
"We are very hopeful. In light of the close ties between President Muizzu and China, we can achieve a lot here. We have been able to do a lot even within this trip. The President will offer details on that. Investors in Maldives will also learn about this then," Faisal said.
"It is an immense success that Maldives is able to have such close ties with China, which is a country with a population of several billions." Speaking at the Maldives Investment Forum held in China last Tuesday, President Muizzu also appealed to have China reinstated as the country from which the most tourist arrivals come to the Maldives.
