Author: Mohamed Reehaan

Japanese architect Shigeru Ban has designed Infinite Maldives, a “resort residence” in the Maldives featuring gardens and rows of houses on the water made from timber and locally sourced materials. The five-hectare resort will be located within the Male’ Atoll, and is designed to “embrace the Maldivian vernacular” according to Shigeru Ban Architects. The property will feature 44 villas set on beach and over water, connected by a long wooden boardwalk. The houses will surround four gardens by landscape artist Michael Desvigne. Ban designed the Infinite Maldives resort to blend in with the surrounding Indian Ocean. The digital renders show…

Maldives Ports Limited (MPL) has announced it was considering to relocate Male’ Commercial Harbor to Thilafushi, as per the original plan, instead of Gulhifalhu. The commercial harbor’s relocation into the industrial island, or away from Male’ City have been initiatives of the previous two governments, which however did not materialize into any tangible progress. In 2013, the government at the time made the decision to relocate the harbor to Thilafushi, the main industrial island in the region. The succeeding government however, altered the plan and decided to shift the harbor to Gulhifalhu for which reclamation of 192 hectares of land…

The Ministry of Climate Change, Environment, and Energy has awarded Hakathari Labels to the State Trading Organization (STO), endorsing a total of 15 refrigerator models and additional 4 conditioner models. The recent development falls under the comprehensive Hakathari program, an initiative by the ministry ensuring electrical appliances introduced to the Maldivian market to adhere essential energy efficiency standards. Besides this, the program empowers consumers by providing clear indicators of energy efficiency levels of household appliances. Hakathari program encompasses a wide array of electrical appliances that include air conditioners, refrigerators, and washing machines. As of now, 14 air conditioner models and…

The Controller General of Immigration Mohamed Sham’aan Waheed has decided to facilitate issuance of passports from Maldivian cities, in an effort to expedite the process. The decision aligns with President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu’s policy on expediting government services to the public, and integrate modern technology and assets in providing the services. With this decision, passports to locals would now be issued from the four cities outside of Male’ region, that are; Addu City Kulhudhuffushi City Fuvahmulah City Thinadhoo City Following this decision, passports would be delivered four times per week to Addu City, and twice to the remaining three cities.…

The nominees as the new appointees to the Privatization and Corporatization Board (PCB), had their names sent to Maldives parliament for approval. Parliament Speaker Mohamed Aslam read the list of nominees submitted by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu during the legislative’s most recent sitting. President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has appointed the following members to PCB: Hamdhee Ageel – President Hassan Zareer – Economics Ahmed Mushtaq – Accounting and Finance Leena Abdul Jaleel – Banking Moosa Fathuhy – Business Administration The board consists of seven members inclusive of the President and Deputy President.

The Maldives National University (MNU) has revealed its ambitious plan to develop a teaching resort, which it aspires would become a world-leading hospitality school. Speaking to local media, the Chancellor of MNU Dr. Mahmood Shaugy noted the low involvement of Maldivians in managerial positions of tourist resorts in the country, and added that efforts should be made to develop and train more Maldivians for managerial and senior executive-level positions. Shaugy further highlighted the importance of more educational and training opportunities for locals. He also noted that the planned training resort for hospitality would be open for both local and international…

Alia and Yamaha have won two accolades at the Boating Awards 2023 organized by the National Boating Association of Maldives (NBAM). The awards won by Alia and Yamaha are; Most Popular Marine Outboard Engine Best After Sales Service Provider Alia and Yamaha won the two accolades along with one more at the 2023 edition of the Boating Awards as well. Alia introduced Yamaha brand products and began providing high-standard after sales services to the customer base in the Maldives 49 years back. The engines sold by Alia have been modified and tweaked to the Maldivian waters. Yamaha’s authorized distributor, Alia,…

The Trans-Maldivian Airways (TWA) has won the World’s Leading Seaplane Operator title at the World Travel Awards 2023. TMA’s CEO MU Fauzy and Head of Corporate Strategy and Business Development Shubham Moondra received the award at the WTA 2023 held in Dubai. Speaking about the win, TMA noted that its revolutionary and transformative changes to the Maldivian aviation sector had helped with the boom of the tourism sector as well. TMA is also committed towards catering to the growing demands by tourism sector properties, to maintain its pace with the tourism industry’s growth. TMA, the world’s largest seaplane operator, handles…

State Trading Organization (STO) launches its Makita ‘Heyyaa!” promotion on Sunday, December 1, 2023. The promotion commenced on Sunday will run until January 11, 2024, said STO> The promotion was officiated by the company’s General Manager Mohamed Eman during the ceremony held on Sunday morning. Besides the official Makita showroom of STO, the promotion extends to all of its regional outlets as well. While all purchases above MVR 500 subject to a coupon, the products have been offered with up to 30% discounts during the promotional period. After the promotional period, one lucky winner selected via a draw will receive…

Maldives President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has revealed the commitment of the incumbent government in developing renewable energy systems capable of providing 33% of electrical needs for the entire country within the next 5 years. In his speech at the 28th Session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), President Muizzu noted that the current electricity output via renewable means is at 4%, and added that the Maldives needs a minimum of USD 600 million (MVR 9.2 billion) to expand the output to the planned extent, and called for the world’s support in this endeavor. President Muizzu further…