Tag: hulhumale

HDC opens bids to develop Hulhumale apartment complex

Bids to develop and sell an apartment complex in Hulhumale are now being accepted by Hulhumale Development Corporation (HDC).

Bids will be accepted until Thursday, reports Haveeru. Documents are available for purchase until 2:30 pm today, January 8.

The apartment complex will be developed in two separate plots of 2,4500 feet squared each.

HDC requires that a five-storey complex be built on each plot, with 27 rooms in each complex.

Development of Hulhumale is part of the government’s plan to reduce the level of congestion in the capital Male’, which currently houses one-third of the Maldives population of 350,000.

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Rowers gear up for SAARC summit

Addu City and Hulhumale’ students will compete in an International Rowing School Competition during the 17th South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), to be held in Addu City during the first eleven days of November.

Students over age 11 from Addu’s 12 schools and Hulhumale’ have been training in four-seater crew boats, or ‘quads’, since September. The teams are down to their last three weeks of training for one of the Maldives’ first contemporary rowing competitions.

“Over the past few days we’ve been racing the students to select the fastest from within each age group for every school. There have been some very close results so I’m looking forward to some great racing between the schools come the 4th of November.”

British national rower Natasha Howard trains students from a program base on Hithadhoo Island. She arrived in the Maldives in August with fellow rower Rachel Loveridge to volunteer coach students for the competition.

Unable to exercise during the day in Ramadan and with few resources (boats were imported, and the island’s Utility Office has served as a boat house), Howard used the first month to meet with principals and the city council to arrange a schedule to ensure the teams would be ready to compete in November.

“The City Mayor Abdullah Sodiq and all the council members have gone out of their way to ensure that I have everything I need,” said Howard, who has operated from a desk in the council’s education unit.

Howard said the program has generated great enthusiasm in Addu. Without volunteer support from Hithadhoo Youth Center, only a fraction of interested students would have received any training. Instead, seven volunteers learned the sport in order to help instruct 213 interested students on necessary skills.

But limited resources have made cuts necessary.

“I could have cut the sessions twice over and had children in tears when the cut was made to reduce the group to just 16 boys and 16 girls [from each school]. Others ask me constantly could they come for more sessions and don’t believe me until I show them my schedule that there really is not another hour in the week they could come (unless they skip school).”

Further cuts will reduce the team to four boys and four girls from each age group (U14, U16, U19, U21) for the race on 4 November.

Start line: Zero Degrees

The program began with a world record. On 30 March 2010, British national Guin Batten became the first person to row across the Maldives’ equatorial Zero Degree Channel.

Speaking at a presidential ceremony in April, Batten reflected on her record’s significance. “I hope that my crossing is an inspiration to bring rowing back here to the Maldives,” she said.

Primary school teacher and coastal rower James Cowley took the suggestion to heart. When Batten left her boat in the Maldives in March, Cowley used it to develop the sport of rowing from his volunteer base in Thinadhoo.

One significant step was establishing the Rowing Association of the Maldives. In November 2010, the Maldives became the 131st member of the International Rowing Federation (FISA).

Equipment has been slowly added to the Maldives’ rowing collection. Acting as the Sports Development Coordinator for Friends of Maldives (FOM), Batten arranged for two four-person ‘quad’ rowboats and several coaches to be brought to Thinadhoo and Ghadadhoo in 2010 with the support of British Airways (BA), British Rowing and Westminster School.

This year, Howard and Loveridge were accompanied by seven coastal ‘quads’ from the UK, three of which are being used in Hulhumale’ and four of which are in Addu.

“Our aim is to ensure that when the volunteer coaches leave there is a self-sustaining club in place,” Howard said.

The Addu program instructs 213 students, mostly boys, who are shuttled across Addu’s 14 kilometre road, Maldives’ longest, each day for practice. In a progress report, Howard noted that fewer girls had the necessary swimming skills to participate in the program, “it wasn’t for lack of interest in rowing.”

Remembering the drowning incident at Kuda Huraa earlier this year, Howard reported that rowers will receive swim training by a Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) volunteer after SAARC. She also mentioned plans for an Addu swimming program next year “as concern is growing at how many of the students do not know how to swim.”

Students have shown enthusiasm for the program, which involves two two-hour sessions of land fitness and water training each week. Most groups are separated by gender, according to school advisories.

“Like everywhere in the world some students are keener than others and push themselves harder but not a single student has refused to do anything we’ve asked of them from carrying 50 kilo boats to and from the water to doing burpees, press ups, squat jumps and sit ups. We’ve had lots of reports of sore muscles during the first week but everyone came back for more,” Howard said.

In addition to gaining physical strength and finesse, rowers develop strong communication skills.

“The art of communicating with each other and doing the same thing together and at the same time are crucial and something we have been working on with the students,” said Howard, adding that each student learns at an individual pace.

“How quickly a student learns the new skills will vary with each individual – if they are naturally shy and quiet building the confidence to talk and give instructions to their partner will take that little bit longer than it does for an out going, noisy and naturally bossy person! However, the desire to win races is a great motivator and all our students have worked out their various ways of communicating.”

Not just kids’ play

As Batten noted in 2010, the Maldives has a unique appeal for rowing. Howard highlighted the climate’s unique advantages for coaches, novices and experts.

“The area of water we use here in Addu is great for getting novices started – sheltered by some small islands it never gets rough and there are no strong currents. Even when the wind is blowing hard the boats cannot be blown out to sea.

“The warm weather and water also means everyone is very happy to get soaking wet (the more often the better) and we, as coaches, are able to hang off the back of the boats as the students learn to row and so provide one on one coaching support very easily.

“The other great advantage is the ability to look over the side of your boat and see coral, fish and turtles swimming by – definitely not something many other rowing locations can boast about!”

While rowing was a traditional transportation method in the Maldives, contemporary facilities are sparse. Howard said resources are currently being channeled into SAARC preparations on Addu, but that improvements are expected after the summit.

After consolidating the programs in Addu and Hulhumale’, “our next priority is to utilise the local boat building skills and investigate the possibility of having the boats built here in the Maldives to reduce costs and so make them more widely available.”

According to Howard, there is plenty of demand for expansion.

“Interest is not just limited to the students. Teachers, parents, doctors, council members and the ladies in the Education Unit are all desperate to come and have a go and race. Time and too few boats means that everyone has to wait their turn right now,” Howard observed.

For Maldivian rowers, Batten’s record remains fair game for the breaking.

After failing to break her own record in the Zero Degree Channel in November 2010, Batten told the public, “The record is still there for the taking, and there’s a good chance somebody local could break my time of 7:16.”

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Fishermen’s Union says ‘No’ to private ownership

The Fishermen’s Union has rejected Male’ City Council’s proposal to privatise the fish market on the grounds that the change would eliminate competition and complicate boat routines.

“We have to keep our system,” said union chairman Ibrahim Umar. “Privatising will make the operation too big.”

Umar said that 50 vessels currently come to Male’ each day to deliver fish, and that space is tight. Under the proposed plan, said Umar, fishermen would have fewer responsibilities in Male’s fish market but would be expected to make more frequent trips in and out of Male’s harbor.

“There isn’t room for that kind of traffic in the harbor. And there isn’t storage capacity for the extra fish that would be coming in,” said Umar.

According to Umar, the fish market currently enjoys a healthy level of competition.

“Every day the fishing is good, there is enough money, and there is even demand from other atolls for fish from Male’. Privatising the fish market will kill the competition because fishermen will have to sell at the same private rate. Bringing in more fish will also keep the price down, and there’s nowhere to keep it on Male’. We need to run this through the union,” he said.

Male’ Mayor ‘Maizan’ Ali ‘Alibe’ Manik said the plan to privatise is an effort to comply with World Health Organisation (WHO) standards, Haveeru reports.

“When we hand over the fish market for management, the fishermen will just have to bring the fish to the market and hand it over to those in charge of management. That way it saves the fishermen time, allowing them to set off fishing faster,” he said.

For Umar, the advantages were unclear.

“How will fishermen get paid? It will take longer if they aren’t selling the fish themselves,” he observed.

Addressing the issue of facilities, however, Umar said that an earlier proposal to build a fish harbour in Hulhumale’ was being revisited by the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, the Ministry of Transport and Hulhumale’ Development Corporation (HDC).

In 2009, plans to build a fish harbour on Hulhumale’ were sent to the National Planning Council. The harbour was intended to expand and expedite the fishing industry, and reduce the pressure on Male’s market.

When the National Planning Council rejected the plan, however, Umar said there was a breakdown in communication and trust. “They weren’t talking to us, I found out through the Fisheries Minister that they had rejected the plan. There was no communication with [the union] about the plan or the finances.”

Umar said the union was told there was a lack of funds, but claimed that the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) had set aside money for the harbour. “I don’t know what happened with that money, we never got an explanation.”

In 2006, IFAD approved a post-tsunami recovery program in agriculture and fisheries. IFAD currently classifies the program as ‘ongoing’.

Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Ibrahim Didi, said the earlier financial problems have been resolved and the ministry is currently working with HDC to construct a fish harbour.

Didi said expanding work space is integral to privatising the fish market, which is growing.

“There’s already plenty of demand for the fish,” said Didi. “Privatising it would bring significant benefits to fishermen. They will have more access to the harbors, necessities such as ice will arrive on time, and things will happen more quickly.”

Didi said development of Hulhumale’s fish harbour has priority, and plans for other fish harbours will be considered accordingly.

According to Didi, President Mohamed Nasheed’s plan will distribute fishing components such as ice, oil and parts to different interested parties. Didi said the approach would improve facilities.

“If the different components of the fishing industry are spread out among interested parties working with a commercial interest, then business will move very fast because there will be a real business interest.”

The City Council earlier told Haveeru that the goal of privatising the market was to improve selling procedures, not to increase profits. Representatives said the union’s response would affect planning.

Council representatives and officials familiar with the proposal had not responded to inquiries at time of press.

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Council to decide on ferry service retender after protesters blockade terminals

Transport Minister Adhil Saleem has said the ministry and Male’ City Council have discussed terminating the agreement with the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) to operate ferry services, if the council finds that it could provide a better and cheaper service by reopening the bid.

The Minister’s comment comes after riot police were deployed over the weekend to break up protests at Villimale’ and Hulhumale’ ferry terminals, over price increases.

The price for Villimale’ ferry was increased from Rf3 to Rf5 and the price for the Hulhumale’ ferry was increased from Rf5 to Rf8.

Speaking to Haveeru, MTCC CEO Hussein Amr said the company received no public subsidies, “like STELCO”, and was losing Rf 2-3 on every ticket following a hike in fuel prices.

“When a Hulhumale ferry ticket was set at Rf5, a litre of diesel sold for Rf4. The ticket is still sold for Rf5 despite the fact that a litre of diesel is now sold for Rf17 now,” he said. Last year the Maldives spent approximately 20 percent of its GDP on marine diesel, according to customs documents.

Local media reported that pepper spray was used and violent confrontations between police and protesters occurred over the weekend.

Mayor of Male’ City ‘Maizan’ Ali Manik went to Villimale’ while the protest was going taking place and met with the protesters, promising that he would give an answer to their demands before Tuesday.

On Friday, citizens living in Hulhumale’ also conducted a similar protest regarding the decision to increase ferry ticket prices.

The MTCC ferry that arrived to Hulhumale’ late that afternoon was told by the protesters that it could not dock there and passengers had to wait in the ferry.

Later protesters said they had no issues with the passengers aboard the ferry, and let the passengers enter Hulhumale’.

On Saturday, a large number of citizens living in Villimale’ gathered near the MTCC ferry terminal with loudspeakers, banners and boards calling on the MTCC to keep the ferry ticket prices the same price.

Protesters blocked the entrance to the ferry terminal as well as the passage of the boats coming from Male’, by tying a rope across the channel through the reef.

Riot police arrived to Villinmale’ and warned people to leave the area, however after repeated warnings the protesters did not leave the area and police used force to disperse the crowd.

Police Sub-Inspector Ahmed Shiyam said five persons were arrested from Villimale’ during police efforts to control the protest, and were was released last night.

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) Parliamentary Group Media Coordinator and MP Ahmed Shifaz told Minivan News that protesters “should respect the rights of others”.

”Yesterday’s protest affected the citizen of Villimale’ who have no connection with the issue,” Shifaz said. ”Many who work in Male’ and students attending schools in Male’ had to wait back because the protesters had blocked entrance to the terminal.”

He said that Maafannu Madhrasa’s Sports Meet 2011 had to be cancelled because many students could not come to Male’.

Minister Saleem meanwhile told Minivan News that the Council would analyse the the quality of the services provided and the usage of land by the MTCC, and would inform the ministry “whether terminating the agreement and reopening the bid for ferry services will be better and cheaper.”

“If the council makes this decision we would pay what we owe to the MTCC and terminate the agreement,” he said.

Adhil said the Transport Ministry was not interested in which company provided the service, but rather the quality of services provided and the price.

”Protesters should not have obstructed the transportation service because that would have caused so much damages to many people,” he added.

He said the protesters had not complained at the Transport Ministry or at any other institution, or tried to meet any officials, but had immediately gone to the terminals to protest.

In a statement issued following the protest police said that such actions violated the rights of others, and warned that action would be taken against those who misused the right to gather and freedom of expression.

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MDP Ali Waheed alleges that journalists politicised his housing bid

Former Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ali Waheed, who recently crossed the floor to join the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has claimed that journalists covering his winning bid for a beach house in Hulhumale’ had politicised the matter and implied he was corrupt.

Waheed said that he had paid Rf1 million (US$64,580) upfront for the house, after winning the bid with the Hulhumale Development Corporation.

“The house will become my property only after I finish the rest of the payment within five years,” Waheed said in a press statement. “However, the story of this business transaction was spun in the media, with [outlets] writing ‘Ali Waheed and his wife have bought two houses in Hulhumale’ for Rf9.4 million’ (US$600,000)’ in their headlines.’’

Waheed said the journalists who wrote the articles had “attempted to damage my reputation” by implying to the public that there was “corruption in everything I spend money on.”

“Perhaps that is how journalists and owners of those news outlets got land plots, houses and wealth from previous governments,” he continued. “I will not use a proxy and stay hidden, and will do everything very publicly. For the information of such journalists who get personal with their pens, I will be involved in the real estate business in the future.”

He added that he had joined the MDP “with empty hands” to support government’s efforts to “change an antiquated and weak economy to a modern and robust economy.”

“I see the future of the Maldives very clearly, I can see the flats of flat Dhonbe [phrase used by opposition to mock President Mohamed Nasheed],” he said. “By God’s will, Maldivian citizens will see a better tomorrow than today and Ali Waheed will go boom boom to maximum.”

Waheed won the beachfront house for Rf4.6 million (US$300,000), bidding Rf 3020 per square foot. His wife also reportedly won a house.

Waheed’s former opposition colleague, MP Ahmed Nihan, questioned Waheed’s ability to afford such a property on his MP’s wage. Waheed, he alleged, “was quite a poor boy when we first met him as a DRP MP – that’s why we spoke with a friend and arranged him a house for rent that did not require an advance paid upfront,” said Nihan. “There was no way that Waheed could afford to buy a house in Hulhumale’ for Rf4.6 million unless there was a hand of corruption in it.”

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Former DRP MP wins beachfront house in Hulhumale’ with Rf4.6 million bid

Former opposition Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (DRP) MP Ali Waheed, who recently joined the ruling Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), has just won a beachfront house for Rf4.6 million (US$300,000), bidding Rf3020 per square foot.

Local newspaper Haveeru reported that Ali Waheed’s wife had also won a house from the 36 beachfront residential plots on Hulhumale, bidding Rf 3020 per square foot, for Rf 4,749,651 (US$310,000). Waheed and his wife were the third highest bidders for the property, under the Hulhulmale Development Corporation (HDC)’s housing programme.

Waheed’s former opposition colleague, MP Ahmed Nihan, questioned Waheed’s ability to afford such a property on his MP’s wage. Waheed, he alleged, “was quite a poor boy when we first met him as a DRP MP – that’s why we spoke with a friend and arranged him a house for rent that did not require an advance paid upfront,” said Nihan. “There was no way that Waheed could afford to buy a house in Hulhumale’ for Rf4.6 Million unless there was a hand of corruption in it.”

Nihan claimed that Waheed “earns a little more than Rf 60,000 (US$4000) a month like other MPs, pays Rf 25,000 (US$1600) in monthly rent for the apartment he currently lives in, and has to spend the rest on living expenses and helping constituents and travelling to islands to attend meetings and stuff – where did he get the Rf 4.6 million?” Nihan questioned.

Waheed, who was dropped to parliament every session by a fellow MP, “now owns a Mazda 3 with a driver”, Nihan added, further claiming that the MP had paid an advance for his apartment in US dollars.

“Since he joined MDP he always seems very happy and contented. He now has a Mazda 3, has paid the advance payment of his rented house in US Dollars – the payment we delayed for him because he wasn’t wealthy and the landlord was a DRP supporter.”

If Waheed got all the money genuinely by being a MP, “Why does no other MP get to buy a beachfront house in Hulhumale’ for Rf4.6 Million? I cannot afford that,” Nihan claimed.

“MDP MPs are not only fortunate enough to win houses, they also have been winning reefs, uninhabited islands and resorts as well,” he claimed.

Waheed was not responding to calls at time of press.

Aside from Ali Waheed, President Mohamed Nasheed’s brother Dr Ibrahim Nashid and two children of Human Rights Ambassador Mohamed ‘Go Go’ Latheef also won bids for houses in Hulhumale’.

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Cabinet pledges cuts to duties on green tech

Cabinet has pledged to remove all import duties on vehicles powered with electrical or renewable energy sources to try and boost its own green commitments and reduce a national reliance on fossil fuels.

As part of this commitment, the government is also expected to cut import charges on solar panels and batteries that can be used as alternate energy sources for marine vehicles in the country.

According to the cabinet’s recommendations, vehicles and power sources exempt from import charges will require documents from the country’s Environmental Protection Agency to accredit any claimed eco-friendly benefits.

The move is tied to the country’s aims of trying to become carbon neutral by 2020, a goal President Moahamed Nasheed has previously claimed would be a disaster for the nation if not achieved – although the government is yet to outline the exact measures it will take to achieve these aims.

Cabinet’s decision to waive the import charges was made at a meeting held yesterday regarding funding developments to try and encourage greater use of renewable energy sources in everyday life and business. These measures include strategies such as subsidising 50 laari for every unit of electricity produced by renewable energy means.

Aside from this environmental focus, the cabinet was also reported to have taken the decision to cut duties on imports of raw materials and agricultural equipment that could be used to bolster fishing and poultry production to reduce the nation’s overall reliance on imports.

Recommendations were also put forward to develop 15,000 square feet of land in Hulhumale’ into a detoxification and drug rehabilitation centre supported from international donor aid.

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Police confirm Hulhumale’ collision death

Police have confirmed the death a 29-year old man yesterday after a motor bike he was riding reportedly collided with a pick-up truck on the island of Hulhumale’.

Police told Minivan News that the man, identified as Abdulla Saeed, died late last night after a bike he was riding along with a fellow passenger reportedly collided with a truck on the island’s main street.

Police officials told Minivan News that they were currently not sure of the speed either of the vehicles were travelling at when they collided, but claimed that no one else involved in the incident was thought to have sustained serious injuries.

Following the collision, police said that Saeed was taken to Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) in Male’.

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‘Love’ of Hulhumale’ becomes waste management issue for property group

A developer of commercial properties across the Maldives is hoping a new cleanup scheme launched this week on the island of Hulhumale’ will not just put a positive shine on its corporate social responsibility, but also provide bins and a boost to waste management in the country.

As part of a joint property development venture between Pruska and the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) on the North Male’ Atoll island, 40 public bins have been donated as part of a promotional cleanup programme called I Love Hulhumale’. 

The programme saw a number of public and private groups working together alongside Pruska–HDC on Sunday (December 5) to attempt to clean the island of waste discarded onto the surrounding streets and beaches.

Although only six of the donated bins have as yet been placed around Hulhumale’s commercial units in the neighbourhood one area, Ahmed Varish, Senior Marketing Officer for the HDC, said that the joint venture hopes to pursue further possible waste management and recycling schemes around the island alongside its future construction developments.

While some local environmental organisations have praised the joint venture’s work to try and set up a network of bins for public use, they claimed that there is generally insufficient local management knowhow and expertise to deal with refuse in a sustainable and environmental manner.

With President Mohamed Nasheed having committed to the much publicised goal of making the Maldives a carbon neutral nation by 2020, waste management is one potential key focus of a national master plan set to be unveiled early next year focused on becoming a sustainable economy.

Varish told Minivan News that Pruska-HDC accepted that the wider national impacts of supplying bins was not a complete solution for preventing litter; yet the company said it hoped to ensure cleaner streets for current and future residents of the island at the very least.

“We don’t believe bins alone are enough [to clean up Hulhumale’]”, he said. “We need to educate more and get the message out to the population to take responsibility for the environment.”

However, Varish said that the bins were an attempt by the joint-venture company to try and ensure the all round environment looked cleaner for both its future customers and the public at large.

According to the HDC, the six public bins that have been donated are emptied and sent to the island’s waste dump everyday.  The full 40 units will eventually be spread across Hulhumale’ in the future.

Varish claimed that previous attempts to try and establish public bins on Hulhumale’ two and a half years ago had resulted in their theft by members of the public.  Nonetheless, the company said it had planned to “fix each of the bins to the ground” to prevent similar setbacks to its own green commitments, which may include similar clean up campaigns being launched alongside the opening of a number of its new property developments during the next few months.

Varish said that HDC, which is currently constructing commercial residences on six islands in the Maldives, had no plans to extend the donation of public bins to any of these other destinations.  He added that the group was looking at the possibilities in the future of extending into recycling schemes though planned collaborations that were currently being considered.

Ali Rilwan, Executive Director of local environmental NGO Bluepeace, told Minivan News that he believed Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives being carried out in the Maldives, which were generally being conducted by resorts, “were more for publicity.”

Rilwan said that he was nonetheless generally “very encouraged” by schemes to provide public bins in the Maldives by groups such as the Pruska–HDC joint venture in Hulhumale’.  Yet despite this encouragement, he said that a greater need for authorities to spend more on litter collection and street cleaning in the country needed to be matched by business, particularly among some soft drink and bottle water groups that operate there.

“Government funds alone will not help with the country’s waste management issues,” Rilwan added.

When questioned whether there was a need and demand for public bins in Maldivian society, Bluepeace’s Executive Director claimed that in certain areas of the capital of Male’, there were indications of public concern about a lack of amenities to store waste beyond just discarding them in the streets.

“If you look at Male’ there aren’t any bins, yet people can be seen putting their cans near trees as authorities have not come up with preferable facilities,” he said.

With upcoming local council elections now scheduled for February, Rilwan stressed hope that issues of littering, waste handling and environmental legislation may become important points of discussion for candidates looking to secure votes.

Yet amidst hopes of a publically-driven political consensus on stepping up action and investment in more sustainable waste management within the Maldives, Rilwan said he believes that awareness and management were just as vital a resource in dealing with trash efficiently.

“After the tsunami, we had groups like the Canadian and Australian Red Cross spending millions of dollars on building waste management centres,” he said.  “There are now 80 centres on 74 island, but very few of these are functioning, the awareness of how to use them has to be there.”

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