Impacts of the Tourism Industry on the People of the Maldives

Tourism in the Maldives makes a positive impact on the people of the Maldives because it brings in $600 million a year to the economy which in turn benefits the entire society. In 2010 tourism directly contributed 29% of the country’s GDP but because it is the means for growth in the Maldives it also contributes a lot more indirectly. The number of tourists in continuously rising also as there were 14% more tourists in February 2010 than in January 2009 and 32% more than in February 2009. Tourism employs 11% of the population directly.

However tourism in the Maldives also has a negative impact on the locals as most of the resorts are owned by foreign investors so economic leakage occurs because most of the money is going overseas not into the local economy. The average annual salary for staff working in resorts is NZ $1550 and there is also a large inequality in wealth in the Maldives tourism industry.