The Committee of the Whole House has chosen to send a government-suggested amendment to the Waste Management Act, which aims to implement a total ban on waste imports to the Maldives, along with reducing the current fee charged on plastic bags, to the Committee on Environment and Climate Change for additional examination.

The proposal to forward the bill – put forth by PNC’s Ungoofaru MP Ibrahim Shifaz on behalf of the government – to the Committee on Environment and Climate Change, which will examine the legislation as a sub-committee, was suggested by PNC’s Inguraidhoo MP Ibrahim Falah.

Supported by Baarah MP Ibrahim Shujau, the motion was approved with the backing of 63 legislators out of the 72 present. Nine legislators opposed the proposal.

The government states that the main aim of the bill is to create a legal structure to entirely ban waste imports into the Maldives. The amendment aims to update existing waste management principles to foster sustainability and tackle issues recognized in the enforcement of the current laws.

A major change suggested in the bill is the elimination of the MVR 2 charge currently imposed on bundles with over 50 plastic bags. If authorized, the amendment would exclude wholesale acquisitions of plastic bags from the current tax.

The legislation highlights that eliminating the charge on bigger plastic bag bundles would lead to a decrease in government income. As per the data in the legislation, the state has obtained MVR 2,011,421 from the plastic bag levy this year, in contrast to total revenues of MVR 5.9 million from the last year.