Maldives Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Publication Date: April 2024

Report Pages: 77

Analyst: Sebastien De Rosbo

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Summary
Table Of Contents

Maldives telecom sector feels the sharp impact of tourists staying away during Covid-19

With its economy so heavily dependent on tourism, the Maldives has suffered heavy economic as well as health casualties during the pandemic. The country had a relatively short period of lockdown and was willing to welcome visitors back as early as July 2020. But the effective shutdown of international air travel for most of the year resulted in the bottom falling out of the Maldives’ tourism industry, taking GDP down 32% in the process. The economy fared better in 2021, with a return to growth, yet it may still be a few years before the country’s key industries can return to the same level of prosperity that they previously enjoyed.

The Maldives’ telecoms market is experiencing a similar level of pain because of the pandemic, due to being overweight in the mobile segment. That is because, historically, the country’s high number of tourists and expatriate workers has inflated the penetration rate for mobile services, making it one of the highest in the world. That rate crashed in 2020 as demand for SIM cards (primarily prepaid) dried up. However, the number of contract subscribers increased as locals took advantage of competitive pricing offers from operators.

Everything now rests on a fast return to normality, with tourists helping to boost the nation’s coffers as well as buying up those prepaid SIM cards. With commercial 5G services already launched and fibre networks rapidly expanding around the country, the Maldives is primed to deliver world-class telecommunications services to its domestic and international customers.

This report includes the regulator's market data to August 2021, telcos' financial and operating data updates to September 2021, assessment of the global impact of Covid-19 on the telecoms sector, and other recent market developments.

Key developments:

The Maldives’ telecom sector starts to show signs of recovery after being pummelled by the Covid-19 crisis.
Ooredoo Maldives launches the Maldives’ first commercial 5G mobile service in Greater Male.
The Maldives-Sri Lanka (MSC) cable system is lit, less than a year after construction began.
Inmarsat and Cobham SATCOM are awarded a contract to connect fishing vessels operating in the Maldives Economic Exclusion Zone to Inmarsat’s Fleet One maritime broadcast services.

Companies mentioned in this report:

Dhivehi Raajjeyge Gulhun (Dhiraagu), Ooredoo Maldives, DhiMobile.

Key statistics
Country overview
Covid-19 and its impact on the telecom sector

Economic considerations and responses
Subscribers
Infrastructure

Telecommunications market
Regulatory environment

Regulatory authority
Telecom sector liberalisation
Mobile Number Portability (MNP)

Mobile market

Major mobile operators

Dhiraagu (DhiMobile)
Ooredoo Maldives (formerly Wataniya Telecom)

Mobile voice
Mobile broadband
Mobile infrastructure

5G
4G (LTE)
3G

Fixed-line broadband market

Other fixed wireless broadband technologies

Wi-Fi
WiMAX
Satellite internet

Fixed network market

Major network operators

Telecommunications infrastructure

National telecom network

Domestic satellite service

Government Network of the Maldives (GNM)
International infrastructure

Satellite networks
Submarine cable networks

Glossary of abbreviations
Related reports

List of Tables

Table 1 – Top Level Country Statistics and Telco Authorities – Maldives – 2021 (e)
Table 2 – Change in Maldives’ GDP growth rate – 2011 – 2022
Table 3 – Development of telecom sector revenue and growth trend – 2009 – 2020
Table 4 – Change in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Table 5 – Evolution of contract and prepaid mobile subscribers – 2012 – 2021
Table 6 – Development of Dhiraagu’s revenue and profit (MVR billion) – 2014 – 2021
Table 7 – Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile subscriber base (thousand) – 2011 – 2021
Table 8 – Change in Ooredoo Maldives’ revenue (QAR million) – 2009 – 2021
Table 9 – Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile ARPU (QAR per user per month) – 2011 – 2021
Table 10 – Growth in mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Table 11 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers – 2011 – 2026
Table 12 – Proportion of fixed broadband connections by platform – 2016 – 2019
Table 13 – Change in the number of Ooredoo Maldives’ fixed wireless broadband subscribers – 2010 – 2021
Table 14 – Decline in fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2011 – 2026
Table 15 – Fixed-line subscribers by region – 2012 – 2021
Table 16 – Change in Dhiraagu revenue by segment (BD Thousand) – 2017 – 2020
Table 17 – Historic – Growth in the mobile subscriber base – 1998 – 2010
Table 18 – Historic - Growth in the internet user base – 1996 – 2010
Table 19 – Historic - Development of fixed voice connections and penetration – 1995 – 2010
Table 20 – Historic - Change in Maldives’ GDP growth rate – 2006 – 2010
Table 21 – Historic - Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile subscriber base (thousand) – 2006 – 2010
Table 22 – Historic - Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile ARPU (QAR per user per month) – 2008 – 2010
Table 23 – Historic - Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers – 2009 – 2010
Table 24 – Historic - Growth in international internet bandwidth – 2007 – 2017

List of Charts

Chart 1 – Change in Maldives’ GDP growth rate – 2011 – 2022
Chart 2 – Development of telecom sector revenue and growth trend – 2009 – 2020
Chart 3 – Change in the number of mobile subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Chart 4 – Evolution of contract and prepaid mobile subscribers – 2012 – 2021
Chart 5 – Development of Dhiraagu’s revenue and profit – 2014 – 2021
Chart 6 – Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile subscriber base – 2011 – 2021
Chart 7 – Change in Ooredoo Maldives’ revenue – 2009 – 2021
Chart 8 – Development of Ooredoo Maldives’ mobile ARPU – 2011 – 2021
Chart 9 – Growth in mobile broadband subscribers and penetration – 2011 – 2026
Chart 10 – Growth in the number of fixed broadband subscribers – 2011 – 2026
Chart 11 – Proportion of fixed broadband connections by platform – 2016 – 2019
Chart 12 – Change in the number of Ooredoo Maldives’ fixed wireless broadband subscribers – 2010 – 2021
Chart 13 – Decline in fixed lines in service and teledensity – 2011 – 2026
Chart 14 – Change in Dhiraagu revenue by segment – 2017 – 2020

List of Exhibits

Exhibit 1 – Mobile operators and service launch

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Maldives Telecoms Market Report

Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband - Statistics and Analyses

Purchase this Report

Maldives telecom sector feels the sharp impact of tourists staying away during Covid-19

Key developments:

Companies mentioned in this report:

Key statistics

Country overview

Covid-19 and its impact on the telecom sector

Telecommunications market

Regulatory environment

Mobile market

Fixed-line broadband market

Fixed network market

Telecommunications infrastructure

Glossary of abbreviations

Related reports

Purchase this Report

Share this Report

TMT Intelligence

A platform to scale your intelligence tasks

Research Methodology

Hot Topics

News & Views