San José, Costa Rica: As the most recent member of the category of middle-income countries, the Maldives has participated in the High Level Conference on Middle-Income Countries, focusing on the theme, “Networks for Prosperity”. Represented by His Excellency Ambassador Ahmed Sareer, the Maldives called for enhanced cooperation amongst developing nations.
Describing the massive advancement the Maldives has made in terms of development, Ambassador Sareer noted that the country continues to suffer from disadvantages that are associated with small island economies such as narrow economic base, geographical remoteness, a lack of scale economy, vulnerability to exogenous shocks and environmental fragility. Though the Maldives has graduated from Least Developed Country status, it does not change the socio-economic ground realties overnight. He went on to elaborate that the best way to address these challenges was through greater economic diversification, specific cooperation, and green technology based foundations.
Ambassador Sareer went on to illustrate that economic stability in a vulnerable state like the Maldives can only be achieved through holistic approaches where there is convergence between development and sustainability. He noted that “greening industries such as tourism will not only help minimize and cushion the detrimental impact of climate change impacts but also increase the resilience of industries to commodity-based shocks.”
