Emirates has once again been recognised for its role in growing Maldives’ tourism industry. The world’s largest international airline has been presented with the ‘President’s Tourism Gold Award’ at an awards gala ceremony held on 3 October to mark National Tourism Day in the idyllic archipelago.
As part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Ministry of Tourism Maldives, Emirates received the prestigious recognition for “Outstanding Contributions to the Development of Tourism in the Maldives”, highlighting its 35 years of service to the country, with flights to and from Male since 1987.
This is the second prestigious award presented to Emirates within the last three months in appreciation of the role it has played in the growth of tourism in the Maldives. In July, Emirates was honoured by the Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI), the oldest tourism-related association in the Maldives, with the ‘50 years of Tourism Award by MATI.’
The President’s Tourism Gold Awards aims to recognise the services of individuals and establishments that have contributed to the development of the nation’s tourism industry over the years.
In 2021, Emirates renewed its long-standing partnership with the Maldives by extending a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Tourism. The agreement reaffirmed the airline’s commitment to the Maldives and outlined various initiatives to promote trade and tourism to the country. Emirates was recognised as the top airline for the Maldives, in terms of passenger numbers, carrying 265,000 passengers in one year alone and supporting the remarkable recovery of the nation’s tourism industry following the lifting of COVID-19 related travel restrictions.
Emirates has played an integral role in the socio-economic development of the Maldives over the past 35 years and has consistently contributed to the growth of its tourism industry, a pillar of its economy. The award-winning international airline commenced services to Malé on 27th May 1987, and has operated more than 29,000 round trip flights to the Maldives, logging approximately 135 million kilometers on the route and carrying 8.5 million passengers to and from the destination.
Today, Emirates operates 35 flights a week to and from the Maldives, connecting travellers and exporters to a network of over 140 passenger and cargo destinations. Emirates has restored more over 90% of its pre-COVID route network, providing connectivity across six continents.