Maldives Civil Aviation Authority Act (Act No: 2/2012)

Objective

The main objectives of this Act are as follows.

2. 1. Control and regulate all matters connected with civil aviation of the Maldives under well-established standards.
   2. Establish a separate body under the name “Maldives Civil Aviation Authority” and determine the functioning of the authority.
   3. Facilitate civil aviation in the Maldives according to civil aviation related international conventions which do not contravene Maldives’ independence and sovereignty.

Establishment of the Maldives Civil Aviation Authority

3. 1. Maldives Civil Aviation Authority is established upon commencement of this Act. Maldives Civil Aviation Authority is a legal entity, able to sue and be sued, having the right to acquire and own property, to deal in credit, and to obtain proceeds from such properties, and which will determine procedures and policies for planning and organizing all matters relating to civil aviation in the Maldives, and will do everything necessary to enforce all matters in this Act.
   2. Maldives Civil Aviation Authority is not part of the Maldives Civil Service.
   3. Maldives Civil Aviation Authority shall be managed under the supervision of a Minister appointed for the same by the President.
   4. Upon the establishment of the Maldives Civil Aviation Authority under Clause (a) of this Article, and prior to commencement of this Act, all property and utilities which were designated to, the budget allocated by the Parliament to, and all responsibilities, obligations, rights and benefits incurred under law and agreements by, the Ministry of Transport and Communication’s Civil Aviation Department, shall be transferred to the Authority.

Seal

4. The Authority shall have an official seal. Where the Authority signs an agreement which the law obligates to be in writing, such agreement, and all other official documents which the law obligates to bear the seal, shall be endorsed with the Authority’s seal. All such documents which bear the Authority’s seal must be signed by two (02) Directors authorized by the Authority.

Responsibilities of the Authority

5. Responsibilities of the Authority shall be as follows:

   1. Performance of all responsibilities relating to civil aviation as mentioned under this Act or any other Act.
   2. Performance of all duties of the Ministry under Act 2/2001 (Maldives Civil Aviation Act).
   3. Organized and sustainable development and advancement of the Maldives civil aviation system.
   4. Formulate regulations, policies and standards required to ensure safety and security of the civil aviation services of Maldives.
   5. Provide technical and administrative support and advise to the government and civil aviation industry on matters related to civil aviation.
   6. Establish a fair and competitive environment in Maldives civil aviation industry, and improve and develop that industry.
   7. Prevent anti-competitive business practices in Maldives civil aviation
   8. Coordinate all obligations on Maldives and perform all obligations on the Authority under international conventions related to civil aviation and its safety and security, to which Maldives is a party.
   9. Determine fees for services provided by the Authority, and publish its service quality.
   10. Represent Maldives at international conferences relating to civil aviation.
   11. Provide information and instructions to the public on matters relating to the civil aviation industry.

Powers of the Authority

6. The Authority shall have the following powers, to perform all duties and obligations placed upon it under this Act and all regulations made pursuant to this Act.

   1. Formulate regulations relating to the following matters:

      1. Relating to safety, security and economy of civil aviation.
      2. Relating to services provided and permits issued by the Authority, and administrative actions and fines on those who transgress on the regulations.
      3. Relating to hiring, dismissal, transfer, promotion, salary and allowances of employees, and employment policies.
   2. Organize activities in its own capacity, in collaboration with civil aviation authorities of other countries or international organizations, for the development of civil aviation.
   3. Provide to the employees of the Authority training, scholarships or loans for training purposes.
   4. With the Minister’s consent, incorporate companies, acquire shares of companies and form partnerships.
   5. Enter into contracts to acquire property or retain services to fulfill obligations of the Authority under this Act.
   6. Utilize the Authority’s property, conduct transactions using the property, and mortgage the property to acquire loans.
   7. Do all necessary to carry out or to facilitate in carrying out all responsibilities under Article 5 of this Act or for the implementation of this Act.

Acts enacted before this Act came into force

7. All regulations made by the Civil Aviation Department of the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Transport prior to the commencement of this Act shall be considered made by the Authority.

Policy of the Civil Aviation field

8. 1. It shall be the Ministers responsibility to determine the civil aviation policy in Maldives as per the fundamentals of this Act and in a way to achieve the objectives of this Act.
   2. The Minister shall inform the Authority in writing the usual policies of the Government concerning civil aviation.
   3. Unless otherwise directed by the Minister, the Authority shall act in conformity with the policies determined by the Minister.

Powers and responsibilities of the Minister

9. The Authority shall have the following powers, to perform all duties and obligations placed upon it under this Act and all regulations made pursuant to this Act.

   1. Upon consultation with the Authority’s Board of Directors, determine policies for improving and maintaining quality of the civil aviation services.
   2. Formulate the policies, systems and regulations, issue the rulings, and take the actions, necessary to make the Authority accountable to the Minister.
   3. Answer to the President and the Parliament on all matters related to the Authority.

Board of Directors of the Authority

10. There shall be a board of directors to determine the policy of the Authority.

Composition of the Board of Directors

11. 1. The Board of Directors shall be composed of a total of 5 (five) members. The 5 (five) members shall be, the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive of the Authority, and additional 3 (three) Directors.
    2. The Board shall consist of people with technical knowledge or experience in one of the following areas.
       1. Aviation field.
       2. Business field
       3. Legal field

Characteristics of Board Members

12. Board Members should possess the following characteristics

    1. Board Members should possess the following characteristics
    2. Has not been convicted of an offence punishable under Islamic shariah, of fraud or of bribery, within the past 5 (five) years.
    3. Is not a member of the Board of Directors of, nor holds any other post in, any company providing civil aviation service or any authority governed under the Authority’s regulation.
    4. Neither he, in own name or by proxy, nor a company he has shares in, owns more than 5% (five percent) share in any company providing civil aviation service or any authority governed under the Authority’s regulation.
    5. Is not currently holding a post which is elected or appointed under the Constitution of the Republic of Maldives or under a law.

Appointment of Board Members

13. Chairman of the Board of Directors, Chief Executive of the Authority and all other Directors of the Board of Directors shall be appointed by the President.

Term of office

14. 1. Term of membership of members appointed to the Board, except the Chief Executive of the Authority, is 5 (five) years. Any member thus appointed can be appointed for a maximum of 2 (two) terms.
    2. Chief Executive of the Authority shall be appointed for a term of 5 (five) years. Other than a Chief Executive dismissed under Article 17 of this Act, any other Chief Executives can be reappointed for an additional term of 5 (five) years. Any chief executive so reappointed can be continually reappointed every 5 (five) years.

Duties and responsibilities of the Board

15. It shall be the responsibility of the Board of Directors to determine the policy of conducting all matters necessary to implement this Act and to determine the policy of things to be done by the Authority to align and develop the civil aviation field. In addition, it shall be the responsibility of the Board of Directors, to formulate regulations to run the Authority, to ensure it runs according to those regulations, to formulate regulations to conduct Board meetings, to determine management policies of the Authority, and to conduct all matters leading to the determination of such policy.

Duties and responsibilities of the Chairman

16. 1. It shall be the responsibility of the Chairman to plan and conduct the Board’s work and to chair Board Meetings.
    2. By a policy set by the Chairman, he may transfer to another member of the Board any discretion or all discretions and powers given to the Chairman under this Act.

Removal from office

17. The president shall have the power to remove from office, prior to expiry of the term of office, the Chairman, Chief Executive or any other member of the Board of Directors. When thus being removed, the reason for removal should be stated.

Resignation from office

18. Where the Chairman, Chief Executive or any other member of the Board of Directors wishes to resign from office prior to expiry of the term of office, he may do so after notifying the President in writing.

Vacancy of office

19. 1. A Director’s office shall be considered vacated if he is absent for 3 (three) consecutive meetings without the written approval from the Minister.
    2. The Chairman’s office shall be considered vacated if he is absent for 3 (three) consecutive Board Meetings without the written approval from the Chairman.

Granting of leave

20. 1. Under a policy determined by the Board, the Minister shall grant leave to the Chairman and Chief Executive.
    2. Under a policy determined by the Board, the Chairman shall grant leave to other members of the Board.

Conflict of interest of Directors

21. 1. A Director shall not participate to any degree, in any investigation of or decision regarding, any matter or issue being dealt with by the Authority, where he has personal interest, benefit or role in that matter or issue. Where the Director had no prior knowledge of his interest, benefit or role in the matter or issue being investigated by the Authority, upon attaining such knowledge, he shall inform the Chairman of the same and refrain from the investigation of or decision regarding that matter or issue.
    2. Information given to any member, in his capacity as a member of the Board, shall be kept confidential. Such information shall not be disclosed to any person not related to the Authority’s work, except to Governmental investigative authorities or for litigation purposes.

Salary and other allowances

22. The salary and other allowances of the Chairman and the Directors shall be determined by the President.

Board meetings

23. 1. Board meetings shall be held in a manner determined by the Chairman. Whereby at least 1 (one) meeting shall be held every Gregorian-calendar month.
    2. Any meeting of the Authority shall have a quorum of at least 3 (three) Directors.
    3. Any decision of the Board shall be made by majority vote of the members present to that meeting. Where all votes have been cast without yielding a majority, the Chair shall have discretion to cast the deciding vote.
    4. Board meetings shall be chaired by the Chairman. In the Chairman’s absence, by another Director determined the Chairman.
    5. Where not less than 3 (three) Directors wish for Board meeting to be held, the Chairman may be notified of it along with the reason. The Chairman shall, within 5 (five) days of receiving such notice, hold a meeting regarding the matters stated in the notice.
    6. The Chief Executive may submit to the Chairman, in writing, a request to expedite the conclusion of a matter. Where the Chief Executive submits as such, a Board meeting should be held, and a decision made regarding the matter submitted, within 5 (five) days of receiving the submission.

Chief Executive of the Board

24. The Chief Executive shall be in charge of the day-to-day running of, and shall represent, the Authority.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Chief Executive

25. Duties and responsibilities of the Chief Executive are specified below.

    1. Conduct the day-to-day activities required to implement this Act in accordance with the policies set by the Board of Directors.
    2. Manage the Authority in accordance with policies set by the Board of Directors.
    3. Do all necessary for, the recording and maintenance of minutes of Board meetings, the opening and closing of bank accounts, the keeping of books and having them audited.

Delegation of responsibilities of the Chief Executive

26. The Chief Executive has the discretion to delegate, in writing, to another Director of the Board, the responsibility of doing anything which the Chief Executive is obliged to do under this Act.

Staff

27. The Chief Executive shall employ the staff needed to do the Authority’s work, transfer them between jobs, and terminate their employment, in accordance with Act 2/2008 (Employment Act) and the regulation established by the Board.

Immunity

28. Neither the Authority, its staff, nor anyone delegated by it, shall be liable for any damage caused, or which occurred, while carefully and prudently fulfilling any responsibility conferred by this Act or any regulation made under this Act.

Civil Aviation Fund

29. A fund named “Civil Aviation Fund” shall be established at the Authority. It is the responsibility of the Chief Executive to manage the fund according to a policy set by the Authority.

Fee levied from passengers

30. Of the fee levied under Act 71/78 (Act regarding levying airport service charge from passengers departing abroad from a Maldivian airport) from every passenger departing from a Maldivian international airport, 2 (two) American Dollars shall be for the Civil Aviation Fund.

Expenditure

31. Unless otherwise stated in this Act, all expenditures of the Authority shall be made from the Civil Aviation Fund stated in Article 29 of this Act.

Money from loans

32. To do its work, the Authority may take financial loans from the Government or a financial institution.

Keeping money and books

33. All financial books and all documents of the Authority should be managed in accordance with Act 3/2006 (Finance Act).

Power to invest

34. For the Authority’s benefit, its money may be invested. The Board shall determine how much and in which field such an investment shall be made.

Financial year

35. The Authority’s financial year shall be from January 1st to December 31st of each Gregorian calendar year.

Accounts management

36. The Authority shall maintain records of all its financial transactions.

Auditing the accounts

37. The accounts shall be audited each year by the Auditor General or an auditor approved by the Auditor General.

Auditors' remuneration

38. The auditors shall be remunerated by the Authority.

Audit report

39. At the end of each financial year, the Authority’s accounts shall be submitted to the auditors, and an audit report obtained.

Information required in the audit report

40. The audit report shall contain the information specified below.

    1. How clearly the financial statements show the Authority’s financial transactions;
    2. How well the books are kept;
    3. Any other information the auditors see fit to include in an audit report.

Auditors submitting complaints to the Minister

41. Pursuant to any information acquired during the audit process, the auditors may at any time submit a complaint to the Minister.

Aiding the auditors

42. 1. The Authority shall furnish to the auditors, without any hindrance, all documents and all information regarding finances, of the Authority. Anyone hindering the auditors is an offence.
    2. Anyone who commits the offence stated in Clause (a) of this Article shall be fined any amount between Maldivian Rufiyaa 10,000/- (ten thousand) and 50,000/- (fifty thousand), and his employment terminated.

Copy of documents

43. The auditors may take a copy of any document that they want.

Annual report

44. A report of how the Authority was run, along with the audited accounts, shall be prepared by the Authority and submitted to, and endorsed by, the Board of Directors, and then submitted to the Minister, within 4 (four) months of the end of each financial year. A copy of the report shall be sent to the Parliament.

Permits previously issued by the Civil Aviation Department

45. Once this Act comes into force, permits, licenses and certificates issued by the Civil Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport and Communication before this Act came into force, shall be deemed issued by the Authority.

Transfer of staff

46. All staff working in the Civil Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport and Communication at the time this Act comes into force shall become staff of the Authority.

Salary of transferred staff

47. The rank, job responsibilities, salary and allowances of the staff working in the Authority shall be resolved within 3 (three) months of this Act coming into force, and the resolution shall be implemented within 4 (four) months of this Act coming into force. The salary and allowances given after transfer of staff under Article 46 shall not be lower than the salary and allowances those staff were given at the Civil Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport and Communication. And the rank allocated to a staff shall not be lower than the rank he was at previously.

Staff’s right to pension and other privileges

48. Everything to do with the pension of the Authority’s staff shall be determined by Act 8/2009 (Maldives Pension Act).

Revising the Authority’s decision

49. Where anyone believes his right has been encroached upon by a decision made by the Authority pursuant to anything it needs to do, or any power conferred on it, under this Act, and if that person is dissatisfied with the decision, he has the right to submit to the Minister a request to review the decision.

Method of reviewing matters submitted to the Minister

50. 1. The Minister shall form an Appeals Committee to review the matters submitted to the Minister according to Article 49 of this Act. The Board of Directors shall make the regulation on how the Appeals Committee shall be formed and how the Appeals Committee shall review the matter.
    2. The Appeals Committee shall conclude, within 60 (sixty) days of submission, its review of a matter submitted to the Minister according to Article 49 of this Act.

Reason for the decision

51. 1. Where anyone believes his right has been encroached upon by a decision made by the Authority pursuant to anything it needs to do, or any power conferred on it, under this Act, he has the right to submit to the Authority, in writing, within 30 (thirty) days of receiving knowledge of the decision, a request to state the reasons behind the decision.
    2. Within 10 (ten) days of receiving a written request, according to Clause (a) of this Article, to state the reason, a document stating the reasons for the decision, and the reasons referred to in the decision, shall be given to that person.

Regulation

52. Unless otherwise stated in this Act, the Authority shall make all regulations to be made under this Act. The regulations to be made under this Act shall be made and gazette within 6 (six) months of this Act coming into force.

Date of coming into force

53. Once this Act is passed and ratified, it shall come into force on the day it is published in the gazette.

Definitions

54. Unless otherwise stated in this Act or unless the context otherwise requires, the words and phrases below shall be defined as follows.

    "Authority" means, the Maldives Civil Aviation Authority established under this Act.

    "Minister" means, the Minister appointed to do what the Minister is required to do under this Act.

    "Board" means, the Authority’s Board of Directors.

    "Chairman" means, the Authority’s Chairman and anyone temporarily performing the responsibilities of the Chairman.

    "Chief Executive" means, the Authority’s Chief Executive and anyone working in that capacity.

    "Director" or "Directors" mean, members of the Authority’s Board of Directors.

    "Civil Aviation Department" means, the authority that oversees and manages everything to do with Maldives’ civil aviation.

    "appropriate Ministry" and "Ministry of Transport and Communication" mean, the Ministry at the time given guardianship of the authority that oversees and manages everything to do with Maldives’ civil aviation.