MDP approves policy to allow residents to vote for councils where they live

The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) congress has approved a decentralisation policy proposing changes to local council elections, including allowing people to vote for councils in the islands or cities where they live rather than requiring them to vote based on their permanent registered address.

The policy was approved on Saturday with the support of 460 of the 564 delegates present at the congress at the time of the vote.

The decentralisation policy was presented by Ali Niyaz, secretary of the MDP’s Decentralisation Committee and former MP for Hulhumalé.

The paper contains proposals covering five main areas of the decentralised governance system, including changes to council elections, financing, administration and composition.

One of the main proposals is to change the way people vote in local council elections.

Under the current system, voters elect the council of the island or city where their permanent address is registered, even if they have lived elsewhere for an extended period.

The MDP policy proposes giving people the option to vote for councillors in the island or city where they live.

The policy also proposes increasing the block grant allocated to councils from five per cent to 15 per cent, tripling the proportion used as the basis for the grant. The 2026 fiscal framework describes the existing block grant formula as including five per cent of projected state revenue, excluding specified categories.

The policy further calls for consideration of allocating 20 per cent of revenue collected for the Green Fund, 50 per cent of land rent and five per cent of central taxes collected from a council’s jurisdiction to the respective council.

Another proposal seeks to separate council administrations from the Civil Service and give councils direct authority over their administrative affairs. This would include powers to recruit, dismiss and promote employees.

Changes have also been proposed to the working arrangements and composition of councils.

Under the policy, council presidents and vice-presidents would continue to serve in their existing capacities, while other councillors would no longer be required to attend the council office every working day. Instead, those councillors would receive a specified allowance for meetings they attend.

The policy also proposes increasing the number of councillors elected from larger constituencies.

Another proposal calls for abolishing Women’s Development Committees and introducing equal representation of men and women among elected councillors, excluding the council president.

The Decentralisation Act sets out the powers and responsibilities of local authorities, including the composition of councils, provision of public services, council finances, grants and revenue.

With the congress approving the policy, the proposals have been adopted as part of the MDP’s decentralisation policy. Changes requiring amendments to existing laws would have to go through the relevant legislative process before they could take effect.