Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI)

What Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) does

The Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) is a non-governmental, non-profit industry association founded in 1982 and headquartered in Male', Maldives. As the primary coordinating body between the Maldivian government and the tourism industry, MATI aligns new laws, regulations, and guidelines with tourism industry best practices, while also representing the industry internationally and locally through seminars, research, and professional consultation. Its designated focus areas are Sustainable Tourism Development, Advocacy, Human Capital Development, Preservation and Promotion of Culture and Heritage, and Community Engagement.

MATI serves a member base of tourism stakeholders in the Maldives — including hotels, resorts, travel agents, tour operators, and airlines — and offers a portfolio of services rather than commercial technology products. Core offerings include a member portal (portal.mati.mv), an industry news platform, the Chevening/MATI Scholarships, the "Dream, Decide, Develop" career guidance series, the Maldivian Traditional Stone-carving Course, the MATI Insight knowledge-sharing series, the MATI Member Forum, and tourism publications such as the "50 Years of Tourism" coffee table books. The association is funded through member fees and event participation charges, with event pricing disclosed at MVR 2,313 ($150) per member and MVR 4,626 ($300) per non-member for MATI Insight sessions.

MATI is governed by an elected Executive Board including Chairman Hussain Afeef, Vice-Chairmen Ahmed Nazeer and Salah Shihab, Secretary General Asad Ali, and Financial Controller Ahmed Hafeez. The organization operates with approximately 10 employees from a single headquarters in Male' and reports no external investors, parent company, or subsidiaries. Notable recent developments include election to the UN Tourism Board of Affiliate Members in October 2025 and AGM attendance growth to 111 members in 2025.

Name

Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI)

Legal name

Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI)

Website

https://mati.mv

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MATI is a non-profit tourism industry association founded in 1982 in Male', Maldives, coordinating between government and the country's hotels, resorts, tour operators, and airlines through advocacy, training, events, and member services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tourism Industry Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Convention and Visitors Bureaus (561591)

akta.pro primary industry

Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency (BPADALAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Waste Reduction & Circularity Solutions (Plastics Elimination, Recycling, Composting) (THAAANAF), Luxury Eco-Resorts (THAGACAK)

Keywords

• Tourism industry advocacy
• Industry association services
• Human capital development
• Sustainable tourism development
• Membership organization services

Headquarters

HQ city

Male'

HQ country

Maldives

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) is a non-governmental, non-profit organization formed in 1982 to develop tourism in the Maldives. It serves as the coordinating body between government policy-making bodies and private-sector tourism stakeholders, aligning laws, regulations, and guidelines with tourism industry best practices. Its offerings include advocacy and policy representation, member services through an online portal, training and scholarship programs, knowledge-sharing events (MATI Insight), member forums, and tourism heritage publications.

Product overview

Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI) is a non-governmental, non-profit tourism industry association (established 1982) that does not offer a commercial technology product. Rather, MATI provides member services including a web-based member portal, industry news platform, training and scholarship programs, knowledge-sharing events (MATI Insight), member forums, and tourism publications. The organization focuses on sustainable tourism development, advocacy, human capital development, and cultural preservation rather than commercial product offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• MATI Member Portal A web-based member portal accessible at portal.mati.mv providing exclusive resources, services, and information for MATI members in the Maldives tourism industry.
• Industry News Platform Online platform providing announcements, industry news, and press releases covering developments in the Maldives tourism sector.
• MATI Insight (Knowledge-Sharing Event Series) Series of knowledge-sharing events covering tourism industry topics including revenue, sales, marketing, branding, environmental conservation, human capital development, technology, and innovation, delivered to MATI members and tourism professionals.
• MATI Member Forum Regular member forum event bringing MATI members together for industry discussion, networking, and engagement.
• Chevening/MATI Scholarships Scholarship program in partnership with Chevening supporting human capital development in the Maldives tourism industry, providing educational opportunities for Maldivian students and tourism professionals.
• Dream, Decide, Develop (Career Guidance Programme) Career guidance series jointly developed with MAHRP to enhance awareness of career paths in the hospitality industry for secondary education students.
• Maldivian Traditional Stone-carving Course Cultural preservation initiative training craftsmen in traditional Maldivian stone-carving (galuvadaann), developed with Gadheemee Collection and the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Heritage.
• 50 Years of Tourism Publications Coffee table books documenting Maldives tourism history, including '50 Years of Tourism in Maldives' and 'Maldivian Resort Architecture – 50 Years of Island Resorts'.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, minor and core.

• UN Tourism (formerly UNWTO)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 October 2025International organization representing Maldives tourism industry. MATI elected to UN Tourism Board of Affiliate Members, enabling international representation and engagement with global tourism policy and standards.
• Salih Shihab & Co (SSCo LLP)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 9 February 2025Delivered presentation on Industrial Relations Act at MATI's 35th AGM, providing professional consultation on regulatory matters affecting tourism industry.
• Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sports and FitnesscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Government ministry partner for the Marriott International Maldives Apprenticeship Program (MIMAP), developed to develop local talent and create career opportunities for Maldivians in hospitality.
• Maldives Institute of Technology (MIT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Educational institution partner for Marriott International Maldives Apprenticeship Program (MIMAP) combining classroom learning with practical on-the-job experience across hospitality disciplines.
• Parley MaldivescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2022Partnership with Parley Maldives tackling plastic pollution and promoting environmental conservation. This collaboration supports MATI's sustainable tourism development focus area and aligns with the Golden Jubilee of Tourism celebrations in 2022.
• CheveningcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 July 2022Chevening/MATI Scholarships partnership providing educational opportunities for Maldivian students and tourism professionals. This initiative supports MATI's human capital development focus area.
• Gadheemee CollectionminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2019Partnership with Gadheemee Collection for the Maldivian Traditional Stone-carving Course (galuvadaann) to revive the dying art of traditional stone carving. Also involved Ministry of Arts, Culture and Heritage.
• Maldives Association of Human Resource Professionals (MAHRP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Joint development of 'Dream, Decide, Develop' career guidance series to enhance awareness of career paths in the hospitality industry and assist students in pursuing tourism careers.
• Ministry of Arts, Culture and HeritageminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Government ministry partner for the Maldivian Traditional Stone-carving Course initiative to preserve and promote Maldivian cultural heritage through tourism industry platforms.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Tourism Industry Aotearoa (New Zealand): National tourism industry association representing operators across New Zealand with advocacy, training, and policy-coordination functions—directly comparable in mandate and member-funded non-profit structure to MATI.
• Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA): Regional industry association representing Caribbean hotel and tourism operators with advocacy and training services—a strong analogue to MATI given the small-island, resort-centric destination profile shared with the Maldives.
• Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC): Canada's national tourism industry association advocating for operators, providing policy coordination and member services—closely aligned with MATI's advocacy, training, and government-liaison functions.
• Australian Tourism Industry Council (ATIC): National industry body representing Australian tourism operators with advocacy, training, and policy coordination functions—comparable non-profit, member-funded structure to MATI.

Broad incumbents

• Saudi Tourism Authority: Government-led national tourism entity combining destination marketing with industry development in a rapidly scaling market; broader in scope than MATI but shares the destination-level industry-development and international-representation mandate.
• World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC): Global private-sector tourism industry body whose Board of Affiliate Members MATI recently joined; substantially larger and global in scope but shares MATI's advocacy-and-research mandate for the industry.
• Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA): Long-established Asia-Pacific tourism industry body with broader geographic scope and a longer history of international advocacy; comparable to MATI in representing industry interests but operating at regional rather than national level.

Others

• Visit Maldives: The official destination marketing organization for the Maldives, focused on consumer-facing promotion rather than industry advocacy; complementary to MATI rather than competitive, but the most locally relevant peer given shared geography and tourism mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mati

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Maldives Association of Tourism Industry (MATI)