President Nasheed has returned to Male’ after concluding his trip to Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and India.
The president’s first stop was at Abu Dabi to attend the World Future Energy Summit.
In his address the President said that the change needed to combat climate change was radical, “although we do not possess all the technologies” to do so.
Nasheed emphasised that countries and companies who led the change through their capacity for innovation would be the winners of the century.
He claimed countries would need to learn to live within planetary boundaries, and further added that by the end of the century, “the entire world needs to go carbon neutral.”
The president also told the summit that the Copenhagen accord would need to be strengthened, and that in its current form would not prevent catastrophic climate change.
“The vast majority of world leaders are determined to strengthen the Copenhagen Accord,” he said.
When that happened, he said, “market failures” would be corrected and carbon pollution would be properly penalised.
“To my mind, the smart money is green,” said Nasheed.
The summit billed itself as the the world’s platform for sustainable future energy solutions, providing “an ideal networking event for industry leaders, investors, scientists, specialists, policymakers and researchers to discuss the challenges of rising energy demand and actions to achieve a cleaner and more sustainable future for the world.”
Bahrain
In Bahrain, the President held meetings with senior government officials as well as with the banking, investment, and finance sectors in Bahrain.
Nasheed met Talal Al Zain, CEO of Bahrain Sovereign Wealth Fund,Dr Esam Abdulla Yousif Fakhro, Chairman of Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and, Mr Easam Yousif Janahi, Chairman of First Energy Bank and Gulf Finance House.
The meetings centred on the business and investment opportunities available in the Maldives. Discussions were also held on forging cooperation between Maldives fishing industry and Bahrain fishing companies.
India
In Chennai, India, Nasheed attended the Partnership Summit 2010 organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry.
Nasheed addressed the summit and said “the government was looking for investors for public sector investment programmes, particularly in utilities and other infrastructure projects.”
President Nasheed also visited a wind turbine manufacturing facility in Vengal near Chennai, India.
“The evolution of wind turbine technology means it is now easy to generate electricity even at low wind speeds,” he said.
“This opens up significant opportunities to set up wind parks in newer locations,” he added.
The president was also present at the signing ceremony when the Government of Maldives signed an agreement with Apollo Hospitals to manage Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) in Male’.
“We have immense faith in Apollo Hospitals and the pioneering spirit of the group,” he said.
“Under the able leadership of the visionary Dr Reddy, we are certain that IGMH and the Maldives will emerge as a global healthcare destination,” the president said.
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