Factbook
History of Maldives — Timeline
Key dates in the history of Maldives, from the Magna Factbook and the Universal Encyclopedia.
1887A sultanate since the 12th century, the Maldives became a British protectorate in 1887 and a republic in 1968, three years after independence.
1965Independence: 26 July 1965 (from the UK).
2003After political demonstrations in the capital Male in 2003, GAYOOM and his government pledged to embark upon a process of liberalization and democratic reforms, including a more representative political system and expanded political freedoms.
2005Political parties were legalized in 2005.
2008In 2008, a constituent assembly -- termed the "Special Majlis" -- finalized a new constitution ratified by GAYOOM.
2012In 2012, after several weeks of street protests in response to a top judge's arrest, NASHEED resigned the presidency and handed over power to Vice President Mohammed WAHEED Hassan Maniku.
2013NASHEED, WAHEED, and Abdulla YAMEEN Abdul Gayoom ran in the 2013 elections with YAMEEN ultimately winning the presidency after three rounds of voting.
2018In 2018, YAMEEN lost his reelection bid to parliamentarian Ibrahim Mohamed SOLIH.
2018Major urban areas: 177,000 MALE (capital) (2018) upper middle-income Indian Ocean island economy; major tourism, fishing, and shipping industries; high public debt; systemic corruption; crippled by COVID-19; ongoing deflation; poverty has tripled since pandemic began Inflation: 1.4% (2024 est.).
2022YAMEEN was arrested and jailed in 2022 on corruption charges.
2023Generation mix — fossil fuels: 93.2% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 6.6% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); wind: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) Energy use: 50.886 million Btu/person (2023 est.).
2023Industries: tourism, fish processing, shipping, boat building, coconut processing, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand mining Agriculture: fruits, vegetables, nuts, other meats, papayas, bananas, tomatoes, maize, pulses, chillies/peppers (2023) Electricity access: 100% (2022 est.).
2023Languages: Dhivehi (official, closely related to Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English (spoken by most government officials) Religions: Sunni Muslim (official) Urban population: 42% of total population (2023).
2023Maldives' fourth democratic election was held in September 2023.
