May 14, Kathmandu- At the request of Maldives Foreign Minister Musa Zameer, the Government of India on Monday provided budget support to Maldives in the form of a special financial agreement extension of 50 million USD Treasury Bill for an additional year.

"State Bank of India (SBI) has subscribed USD 50 million Government Bills issued by the Ministry of Finance of Maldives for an additional year to the maturity of previous subscriptions, these Government Treasury Bills are subscribed by SBI to the Government of Maldives at zero interest under a government-to-government arrangement", The Indian High Commission in Maldives said in a statement.

This membership was extended at the request of the Government of Maldives. "Membership has been continued at the special request of the Government of Maldives to receive budgetary support from the Government of India," the statement said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives has said through a statement that the decision of the Government of India to extend the Treasury Bill as a special financial agreement has come after the Foreign Minister of Maldives Jamir requested the Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar during his official visit to India at the beginning of this month.

The ministry has also appreciated the Indian government's support to the Maldives in the form of budget allocation. “A large number of infrastructure development projects and high impact community development projects are underway with the support of the Government of India. It also includes a significant portion in the form of grant aid", the statement said.

In the statement, it is mentioned that the Government of Maldives is ready to continue the cooperative partnership between the two countries for the mutual benefit and prosperity of its people.