The government has allocated 500 hectares of Rasmalé, about half the reclaimed island, to Abu Dhabi developer Eagle Hills for a luxury waterfront, marina and homes for foreign buyers.
Ministers insist “not an inch” of land will be sold. But Eagle Hills says each time a property changes hands, by sale or inheritance, a new 99-year lease begins. That paragraph was missing from the version of the announcement published by the housing ministry and the ministry’s headline figures were missing from Eagle Hills’ version.
Our explainer covers what was signed, what the state gets, the residency question, the 2015 foreign freehold amendment and what remains unknown. https://maldivesindependent.com/explainer/not-an-inch-sold-the-eagle-hills-deal-and-the-foreign-ownership-question-d77f
