FinLit Fest promotes Islamic finance with cash prizes

Central bank Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has launched 'Tamweel FinLit Fest 2025' to raise awareness about Islamic finance.

MMA said that this is an important initiative to teach people how to manage money in a responsible manner in the country and to raise awareness about Islamic finance. The aim of the festival is to create a community that embraces Islamic finance with the participation of students, youth and the community as a whole, MMA said.

In layman’s terms, the Tamweel FinLit Fest is like a big educational event. "Tamweel" is an Arabic word that means "financing" or "money management," and "FinLit" is short for "financial literacy," which basically means learning how to handle money wisely. It also focuses on Islamic finance, which is a special way of handling money based on Islamic principles—no interest (like loans with extra charges) and more focus on fair partnerships.

The festival was inaugurated by Education Minister Dr Ismail Shafeeu.

The festival has six major events. These are:

• FinLit Challenge

• Debate Competition

• Impact Pitch Challenge

• ‘Future Finance' Essay Competition

• 'Values and Vision' Art Competition

• Short Video Making Competition

The MMA said the events will not only foster creativity, inventive thinking and explore new ideas, but also teach participants to see finance management as a tool for social and economic change rather than just a technical skill.

The Maldives Monetary Authority launches Tamweel FinLit Fest 2025 to promote financial literacy, responsible money management & Islamic finance awareness.
Event details and registration info coming soon. pic.twitter.com/vp6IsKy0QH

— MMA (@MMA_Maldives) August 10, 2025

The FinLit Challenge event will be conducted as a quiz competition. The tournament is aimed at young people between the ages of 18 and 25. The competition will test knowledge about saving money, budgeting, halal investing, risk sharing and the basics of the Islamic financial system.

The challenge aims to create an engaging learning environment while teaching participants practical skills, MMA said. The debate competition, where participants aged between 16 and 25 will have the opportunity to debate important economic issues based on research and evidence, the bank said.

The Impact Pitch Challenge, one of the main activities of the festival, is designed to find innovative Sharia-compliant solutions to promote financial literacy in Maldives.

The challenge, which is open to participants over the age of 18, aims to develop financial literacy tools, develop financial solutions for underserved communities and explore new approaches in Islamic finance through FinTech.

The MMA said the shortlisted participants will have the opportunity to submit their ideas at a bootcamp on November 15 this year. The winners will receive cash prizes of up to MVR 30,000, as well as business funding, opportunities to work with stakeholders and training programmes.

Information on how to participate in the festival will be announced in the coming days, MMA said.