Eagle Hills Chairman Mohamed Alabbar has said the proposed $20 billion Rasmalé project is expected to create around 40,000 jobs during construction and between 15,000 and 18,000 permanent jobs once operational.
In a special interview with Sun Online on Thursday, Alabbar said permanent employment opportunities would come from residential buildings, hotels, commercial establishments and facilities such as parks and schools developed as part of the project.
He added that salaries at Eagle Hills developments would generally be higher than those offered at other workplaces, citing the quality of the company’s projects.
Alabbar said Maldivian businesses would also have opportunities to supply goods and services during construction and after the project becomes operational, helping local businesses grow.
Eagle Hills expects the development to boost tourism and investment, expanding economic activity in the Maldives. Based on the company’s experience with similar projects in other countries, Alabbar estimated that Rasmalé could attract an additional one million tourists to the Maldives annually.
He also said the government could receive approximately $2 billion in tax revenue over the course of the project.
Rasmalé is a proposed development between the Maldivian government and Eagle Hills involving 500 hectares of land leased for 99 years. Under the agreement, Eagle Hills would fund the construction of 5,000 housing units, with an estimated initial cost of around $500 million. Alabbar said the company would recover the investment through the wider development.
Detailed designs and environmental impact assessments must be completed before construction begins. Alabbar estimated that construction could start in approximately one year, while expressing hope that the agreement would be signed soon.
