State Trading Organization
 |
|
| Public | |
| Industry | Consumer Electronics, Home Appliances, Medicals, Supermarket Products, and range of other high quality products |
| Predecessor | Athireegemaafannu Trading Agency (ATA) |
| Founded | Malé, Maldives (1964) |
| Headquarters | Boduthakurufaanu Magu Malé, Maldives |
|
Key people
|
Ahmed Niyaz (Chairman) Ahmed Shaheer (Managing Director) |
| Products | Consumer Electronics, Home Appliances, Medicals, Supermarket Products and other retail products |
| Revenue |
 MVR 7.313 billion (2015) |
|
Number of employees
|
1,263 |
| Subsidiaries |
Allied Insurance Company of the Maldives Pvt Ltd |
| Website | www.stomaldives.com |
Allied Insurance Company of the Maldives Pvt Ltd
Maldive Gas Pvt Ltd
Fuel Supplies Maldives Pvt Ltd
Maldives National Oil Company
The State Trading Organization (:STO ) or STO is a public company with 92.29% of the shares owned by the Maldivian Government with the rest 7.71% being held by the public after the IPO a couple of years ago. It is operated directly under the Ministry of Trade and Industries, and is controlled by a board of directors headed by a Chairman.
When STO took root in 1964, the outlook for the Maldives was grim to say the least. The population was a mere 100,000. The only communication with the outside world was the Morse code and the ham radio. The only airstrip was one put together by the British Royal Air force and inter-atoll transport was limited to trips on the traditional sailing dhoni.
The only resource available was fish, and consumers were at the mercy of importers. Even the most basic food items were expensive. The country had no banks development was slow with no local fund for major investments and no commercial industry.
The need for a central purchasing organization to raise living standards and encourage development was acute. The government responded with the establishment of the Athireegemaafannu Trading Agency (ATA) - the beginning of STO, and the catalyst of change in the Maldives.
ATA financed the purchase and import of essential items in bulk; sold them to the public at low mark-up prices and also purchased supplies for the government.
With proven success in contributing to national development, ATA expanded into the State Trading Organization (STO). The STO undertook all trading and commercial activity on behalf of the Maldivian government.
The nation was growing, and so were the nation's demands. Now the need was not just for staples like rice sugar and flow, but also for quality merchandise, improved construction material and for state-of-the-art consumer goods.
The winds of change were blowing across the nation and STO responded by looking beyond its traditional role of state trader. It began to take up alternative enterprises to earn foreign exchange and broaden the nation's revenue sources.
STO People's Choice Electronics - Established in 1993, STO Electronics deals with branded consumer electronics including home theater systems, digital photography and video equipment, stereo and hi-fi systems and microsystems.
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