Nasandura to Reopen as a Hotel
The government has decided to reopen the Nasandura Palace Hotel, which was closed early 2008 by the ex government, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom..
Announcing the decision, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, Dr. Ahmed Ali Sawad said that decision to reopen the Hotel and its Trends Garden Restaurant is taken because of the delay in the opening of Hotel to be constructed in Male by Shangri-La Hotel Chain. He also said another major reason is that the closure of the Hotel had reduced the revenue earned by the government.
Minister said that the inventory of the Hotel is now being audited and when it is done, the Hotel would be put to bidding process.
Some parts of the building are now being used by the Elections Commission.
Earlier this year, Minister of Finance and Treasury had expressed government’s interest to open the Trends Garden Restaurant in a separate bidding process.
Nasandura Palace Hotel had brought the best profit margins in comparison, among the businesses owned by the Government. The closure of the Hotel had also lead to the increase in the rates of guesthouses in Male while the closure had left several people unemployed. Many had been urging the government to reopen the hotel and the restaurant while others had criticized the government for closing an avenue to increase its much wanted revenues.