Training

Through major investments in education, the Maldives has for a few decades eradicated illiteracy and allowed all children to attend school.

Until the late 1970s, formal schools existed only in Malé, but it was then decided that schools would be on all atolls. The education is free of charge and, according to the constitution, should strengthen respect for Islam and human rights.

• COUNTRYAAH: Country facts of Maldives, including geography profile, population statistics, and business data.

Children start school at the age of six and almost all children complete the first mandatory seven-year stage. Just over two-thirds also enter the voluntary five-year extension phase.

There are both English-speaking schools and schools teaching divehi (Maldivian). Teaching is often of low quality, partly because there is a shortage of educated teachers. At all levels there are Muslim alternatives to the public school.

The Maldives has a university that gathers all higher education in the country, both theoretical and vocational education. In addition, since 2015 there is the Islamic University of Maldives.

• Andyeducation: Introduction to education system in Maldives, including compulsory schooling and higher education.

FACTS – EDUCATION

Proportion of children starting primary school

99.5 percent (2017)

Number of pupils per teacher in primary school

10 (2017)

Reading and writing skills

98.6 percent (2014)

Public expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP

11.1 percent (2016)

Public expenditure on education as a percentage of the state budget

11.1 percent (2016)

2014

March

The government is gathering strong support

March 22

After the parliamentary elections, three of the five independent candidates elected in the Assembly join the ruling PPM. Some members of the MDA also move to PPM. Thus, the government has a two-thirds majority in parliament.

Government party wins in parliamentary elections

The parliamentary elections are being held as planned, despite the fact that two of the four elected commissioners have not been replaced. The largest party will be President Yamin’s ruling PPM with nearly 39 percent of the vote. The second largest is Nashid’s party MDP, which receives 30.6 percent. RP comes in third with 17.6 percent and MDA gets close to 6 percent. The independent election monitoring organization Transparency Maldives states that the election was well carried out but that voting took place. However, the election monitors do not say which party would have bought votes.

The election commissioners are sentenced to prison

The turmoil surrounding the presidential election in the fall of 2013 will have a backlash when the Supreme Court sentenced all four members of the election commission to six months’ imprisonment each for court clashes when they openly criticized the Supreme Court’s decision to annul the presidential election. The four will also be suspended from their posts for three years.