Tag: hulhumale

Government plans US$40 million stadium for Hulhumalé

The Ministry of Youth and Sports has announced plans to construct a US$40 million stadium in Hulhumalé, local media has reported.

“Several components of Hulhumale’ Youth City will be promoted at the forum in Singapore. The stadium being planned for Hulhumale’ will stand out in the region,” Minister for Youth and Sports Maleeh Jamal told Sun Online.

The minister revealed that the investment opportunity would be included in the Maldives Investment Forum, scheduled to be held in Singapore on April 25.

Haveeru has today learned that over 300 investors from 15 countries are set to attend the forum at the prestigious Marina Bay Sands hotel.

President Yameen’s plans for Hulhumalé include the development of ‘youth village’ with a population of 50,000 people, as well a bridge linking the reclaimed island with the capital, Malé.

The vision for the youth city meanwhile includes a “technopolis park” as well as entertainment and sports facilities, he said at the launch of a new housing project this month.

Hulhumalé will become “a paradise on earth” for migrants from across the country, said Yameen.

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President reveals vision for foreign investment at Hulhumalé project launch

President Abdulla Yameen inaugurated a project yesterday for the construction of 3,000 housing units in Hulhumalé by a joint venture company, Sealife Global Inc – formed by two Dubai companies with a local partner.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, President Yameen said his administration’s vision was to develop a “youth village” in Hulhumalé with a population of 50,000 people.

“The youth village will not involve only housing [projects]. It will also include other projects related to the youth village such as the creation of light industries to provide job opportunities, as well as arrangements for food and beverages required by modern youth and restaurant facilities for [fast food],” he said.

Yameen said he hoped the government would be able to realise this vision during its five-year term.

During the launch, Yameen also outlined his vision for “freeholds” for foreign investors who will feel the Maldives to be a “second home” in which to conduct long-term projects.

The vision for the youth city meanwhile includes a “technopolis park” as well as entertainment and sports facilities, he said, in addition to facilities for the tourism and fisheries industries.

The government would also prioritise the inclusion of housing projects in Malé and Hulhumalé as the corporate social responsibility (CSR) component when leasing islands for resort development, Yameen said.

Hulhumalé will become “a paradise on earth” for migrants from across the country, he said.

The construction of a bridge between Malé and Hulhumalé would further open up economic opportunities in the reclaimed island city, Yameen said.

In February, Economic Development Minister Mohamed Saeed pledged to complete the bridge project in two years.

Plans of the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) for the second phase of Hulhumalé development were also being revised to achieve the new administration’s goals, Yameen said, which included providing affordable housing to residents of the capital without adequate shelter.

“Any government upon assuming office will attempt to make the best use of a country’s resources. Everything is subject to change. Charts will change when they are redrawn,” he said.

The 243 flats – ranging from one to four bedroom apartments – to be constructed in the first phase of the new project will be targeted to mid to high-income families, explained Sealife Global’s Managing Director Ahmed Moosa.

The six towers or 10 to 12-storey buildings will include other facilities and services such as a swimming pool and gymnasium, he added. The joint venture company would also construct a 12-storey office complex on the site.

“Adventurous path”

Addressing foreign guests in English, President Yameen said he was pleased to “see you actively engaged in our socio-economic development.”

“I hope this project is going to be rewarding in terms of both profitability as well as catering to the need of the Maldivian people,” he added.

The government was committed to “improving the well-being of Maldivian youth,” he continued, adding that youth were presently deprived of the “opportunity to be gainfully employed and also the opportunity of shelter.”

The government therefore welcomes any project that caters to these “dual needs,” he said.

“We are embarking on a very adventurous path at this point in time,” he said, noting that economic development was essential for maintaining the current environment of peace and stability.

“What we would like to confirm for the foreign investors who come to the Maldives is that foreign investors should feel that Maldives is your second home here,” he said, adding that “a landmark law” will be passed in the next Majlis to strengthen the foreign investment regime.

“We are going to open up the Maldives in a huge way to foreign investors. Our thirst cannot be quenched. The opportunity to foreign investors is going to be enormous. So have faith and trust in us,” Yameen said.

Legislation will also be proposed to the next parliament to create special economic zones, he continued, which would be “likened to cities in Dubai or the Emirates” and “the [business] environment we have in Singapore.”

The new laws would enable investors to have “freeholds” in the country and allow investors “to engage in really, really long gestative projects,” he said.

Yameen assured foreign investors that “your money is safe with us.”

“So I reach out to proprietors and investors in Dubai, in Abu Dhabi, in Qatar and also the Emirates – please, here you have an island, here you have a country where you can invest and where you can be content with your investments,” he said.

“We are embarking on an era of growth,” he said, adding that 52 percent of the country’s population was comprised of young people.

Yameen noted that Hulhumale’ was a vision of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

“He wanted to find breathing space for the overly congested people in Malé. Nobody at that time would have thought that Hulhumalé is going to be the city it is now. There is tremendous opportunity in Maldives and there is tremendous love in us for the Arab-Muslim entrepreneurs. So please come and invest in the Maldives,” he entreated.

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STO’s Hulhumalé hotel to be completed in one year

The State Trading Organisation (STO) – Maldives’ primary wholesaler – has told local media that the five-star hotel it is developing in Hulhumalé will be fully completed in 12 months’ time.

Managing Director Ali Azim told Sun Online that he expected some rooms to be completed and available for use by January 2015.

The original contract for the development of the 250-room Radisson Blu Hotel was signed between the STO and the US Carlson Group.

Financial constraints delayed the start of the project until 2011, while the STO signed a US$32 million syndicated loan agreement in October 2012 to finance the development.

Full speed has been resumed on the construction after a further slowdown last year, Azim told Sun.

In 2012, then STO MD Shahid Ali told local media that the organisation needed at least “at least three resorts and one hotel” to meet its demand for foreign currency at a time the country was facing a ongoing dollar shortage.

“We are trying to a find a way to earn the foreign currency we need without relying on another party for it,” Shahid told Haveeru.

The Maldives grapples with a foreign currency deficit due to a heavy import-export imbalance. Goods from overseas must be purchased with foreign currency, but the Maldives has little ability to earn this outside the resort industry, which is thought to account for around 90 percent of the country’s foreign exchanges.

Since that time, new President Abdulla Yameen – who replaced Shahid soon after assuming office – has declared the STO bankrupt.

“Not only does STO not have dollars, it does not have Maldivian Rufiyaa either. Funding the oil import through STO is now a burden for the state,” said Yameen last November.

The STO sparked fears of an impending oil shortage crisis in early November, after Shahid warned the company would run out of oil in a matter of days if it did not pay some of its US$20 million debt to suppliers.

Shahid told an emergency meeting of parliament that government-owned companies had failed to pay the STO the almost US$40 million it was owed, and appealed to the central bank to use the foreign currency reserves to bail it out of its debt.

After his appointment as MD, Ali Azim announced plans to cut operational costs by MVR 50 million in 2014 (US$ 3,242,542).

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Voice of Women fears further discrimination for IGMH scandal victims

Maldivian NGO Voice of Women has expressed concern that the victims of the recent HIV scandal at Indira Ghandi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) will suffer from further discrimination.

“Our foremost concern is that the mother and child will be subject to unfair and unfounded discrimination based on societal myths and misinformation about the disease,” said the women’s rights NGO.

Despite acknowledgements that the Maldives as a society exhibits a number of high risk behaviors for transmission of HIV, the number of people reported to be living with the illness is less than 100.

The incident, in which HIV positive blood was given to a female patient – whom local media has reported to be pregnant – became public last week.

Following similar calls from the Human Rights Commission, Voice of Women has called for the protection of the patient’s identity as well as urging concerned parties to initiate public awareness campaigns.

The opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) has accused the government of hiding the news – first discovered 8 days prior to the public announcement – until the conclusion of celebrations marking its policy achievements since assuming power.

Health Minister Dr Mariyam Shakeela has rejected calls for her resignation, arguing that the incident was  a one off. She did, however, inform a Majlis committee last week that the health sector was severely underfunded.

An Indian expatriate – allegedly responsible for incorrectly marking the blood test – is currently being held in police custody. IGMH Deputy CEO Dr Mohamed Habeeb told MPs on the government oversight committee that the Indian national had admitted his culpability in the incident.

Voice of Women have been critical of the tone taken by Dr Shakeela in the aftermath of the incident, suggesting she had failed to take responsibility for the systemic failures that led to the incident – instead blaming a single individual.

“We are concerned by repeated calls by the Minister for harsh and criminal punishment for an individual. The punishments should be relevant and take into consideration the failure of the system (if that is the case) rather than laying responsibility solely on an individual,” read the group’s press release.

The NGO also questioned the police’s ability to conduct what it suggests ought to be a medical inquiry.

Further incidents and president’s response

Local media yesterday reported that a similar incident had occurred in nearby Hulhumalé Hospital, with a male patient attempting suicide after mistakenly being told he had hepatitis B.

CNM reported that hospital staff had advised the man to separate from his wife before discovering that the test results were in fact those of another patient. After taking a knife and some rope to the local football pitch, locals dissuaded the man from killing himself. The family are reportedly planning to submit a complaint to the Health Ministry.

Director General of Health Services Dr Sheeza Ali was not responding to calls at the time of press, while Permanent Secretary at the Health Ministry Geela Ali denied any knowledge of the incident.

After being criticised for failing to mention the incident during yesterday’s state address at the opening of the Majlis, President Yameen last night commented on the IGMH incident for the first time.

During a campaign event for Henveiru Dhekunu constituency PPM candidate Mohamed Riyaz, the president was reported as saying that the incident ought not to have happened under any circumstances.

Yameen went on to note that overcrowding at IGMH – which he described as being “busier than the fishmarket” – was a problem that needed resolving urgently.

“If we look at the health minister’s statements at the People’s Majlis committee, there are clinics in Malé. There is a land and building given at a cheap rate – free –  called ADK,” Haveeru quoted Yameen as saying.

The privately-run ADK hospital is the capital’s second largest, and is run by the ADK Group. The group is chaired by the Maldivian Democratic Party candidate for the Komandoo Dhaairaa constituency, Ahmed Nashid.

Vice President Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed met today with representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO), though the President’s Office did not report the IGMH incident as having been discussed.

Shakeela has said that she sought the assistance and advice of the WHO upon learning of the incident on February 19.

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Construction of flats for police to begin next month

Construction of flats in Hulhumalé for police officers will begin during March, President Abdulla Yameen said yesterday during a visit to the Iskandhar Koshi headquarters.

According to police media, President Yameen said at the meeting that resolving housing issues for police personnel in Malé and the atolls was a high priority of his administration.

“Speaking in this vein, the president said construction work in the project for providing housing to police will begin during March with God’s will,” police media revealed.

President Yameen said he has personally witnessed the “difficult conditions” that officers were working in the atolls, adding that the government would “prioritise finding an adequate solution” and would strengthen police welfare mechanisms.

In a visit to the Kalhuthukala Koshi military barracks two days ago, Yameen also pledged to provide housing for soldiers. He reportedly urged soldiers to respect the military’s discipline, code of honour and the dignity of the uniform.

The executive will work with the next parliament to pass legislation needed for policing and provide support to police efforts for establishing a safe and peaceful environment for citizens, he told police officers yesterday.

President Yameen also expressed gratitude to police officers as well as their families for their “patient and hard work” in the face of political unrest during last year’s presidential election.

The president was greeted upon arrival at the police barracks by Commissioner of Police Hussain Waheed, Deputy Commissioner Ahmed Saudhy and “a large number of police,” whom he then joined for evening tea.

“During the president’s visit, he met police officers individually and spent a long time at Iskandhar Koshi. And he offered an opportunity for police officers with queries for him to pose questions and answered their questions,” police said.

In September 2013, the previous administration awarded 300 flats to police officers under a housing project to be carried out jointly by the government-owned Housing Development Corporation (HDC) and the Police Cooperative Society (POLCO).

Under the MVR580 million (US$37.6 million) ‘Blue’s Housing Project,’ 210 three-bedroom and 90 two-bedroom apartments were to be constructed in Hulhumale’.

In addition to the housing project, then-President Dr Mohamed Waheed awarded 50 flats to senior police and military officers.

The awarding of 300 flats to police officers was criticised by the opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) as a continuation of the patronage system established during the 30-year reign of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

“In the light of extensive exposes, such ‘patronage’ is familiar to voters from the single party dictatorship of Gayoom and I believe they will simply say to each other ‘I told you so’,” MDP MP and Spokesperson Hamid Abdul Ghafoor told Minivan News at the time.

Ghafoor said it was “very concerning” that police should be given flats exclusively instead of teachers, doctors and other civil servants. He also questioned the selection process for awarding flats.

While some of the officers may have deserved the housing, there was concern that some officers involved in the alleged “coup d’etat” on February 7 had been rewarded with flats, Ghafoor claimed.

Since the controversial transfer of presidential power that brought Dr Waheed to office in February 2012 – in the wake of a violent police mutiny instigated by officers of the Special Operations (SO) command – more than 1000 police officers were promoted, 110 new police officers were hired, arrangements were made for cheap accommodation in Sri Lanka for police officers and their families and a loan scheme was set up for police officers.

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MNDF unable to recover dead diver’s body

Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) Coast Guard Commander Colonel Mohamed Ibrahim has said that the coastguard faces huge challenges in retrieving the body of a dead diver from 100 meters underwater.

Mohamed Jameel was reported missing on February 3 while diving near Villingili Island last week.

Speaking on Maldives Broadcasting Corporation’s Raaje Miadhu, Mohamed said MNDF divers had discovered Jameel’s fishing net at 70 meters on the third day of the search. The MNDF sighted Jameel’s body at 100 meters the next day.

The MNDF held discussions with expert divers in the Maldives and provided them technical assistance to recover the body however, after diving in the area, divers told MNDF that they were not able to retrieve the body due to the depth.

The MNDF spoke to technical officials of a local ‘Whale Submarine,’ but were unable to recover the body because the currents were too strong for the submarine in the area. Mohamed said there were hanging rocks in the area and it requires a strong hydraulic arm.

According to MNDF, the search team also had foreign diving instructors dive in the area and during the two days they tried visibility was low in the area and currents were too strong.

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Man handed life sentence over 227.4 grams of cannabis

The Criminal Court has sentenced a man to life in jail for the possession of 227.4 grams of cannabis.

The police arrested Mohamed Naif in Hulhumalé in March 2013 near the ferry terminal. On sighting the police at the terminal, Naif had run rom the police and had thrown away a plastic bag containing cannabis, the police told the Criminal Court.

The court has also ordered Naif to pay a fine of MVR100,000 (US$6485) within a month.

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Ferry tales – Managing the Hulhumalé commute

It was 23:30, a large number of people were gathered outside Hulhumalé ferry terminal in Malé, the kind of crowd that usually gathers around a crime scene. But no crime was committed there – no police lines visible.

The people were gathering there to board the ferry to Hulhumalé – an extension of Malé City separated by sea, one of the greater Malé islands. Ferry service staff in blue uniforms were guarding the entrance to three tightly packed terminal waiting areas, as those outside anxiously awaited news of an extra ferry that might shorten the otherwise two-hour wait.

Adam Humam, a tour guide who lives in Hulhumalé hears nothing but complains about the ferry service:

“Look at this ferry, this thing is like a sauna most of the time. One will need to take a shower after traveling on this. Just look at how they have arranged the seats, we have to sit so tightly packed” Humam said, leaning away from the chair to avoid bumping into the next passenger.

The ferry concerned was an average wooden Dhoni, furnished with ten rows of plastic chairs screwed to the floor. The gangway led to two rows of motorbikes at the rear of the boat. Most windows on both sides were shut by the people adjacent, to shelter from occasional splashes of water. A few travellers stood at the back of the ferry – unable to find a seat. The smell was a mix of sea, old wood, and bodily odors.

With few exceptions, almost everyone who were interviewed about the 20 minute ferry service was unhappy with the service. The conditions of the ferry, the terminal and timings – it was all unsatisfactory for most questioned. Just a few long- time residents of Hulhumalé recalled the ferry services having improved significantly in the past decade.

Hulhumalé – a reclaimed landmass measuring 2 square kilometers off the north-east coast of Malé City – is home to an estimated 20,000 people. First settled in May 2004 with just one thousand people, the population of Hulhumalé is expected to double to 60,000 by 2020. The ferry service, operated by the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC), is clearly finding it hard to cater to Hulhumalé’s population boom.

The MTCC has often said the ferry operation is not profitable at current rates, though Malé City Mayor Maizan Ali ‘Alibe’ Manik says that company can manage by investing in lands provided for them to subsidise the service. The Housing Development Corporation (HDC) – the government owned corporation mandated with the development and management of Hulhumalé – remains uninvolved in the MTCC’s operations. The transport authority, however, does have a mandate to monitor and regulate all ferry services in the country.

How is the service?

“What can I say? My wife and I moved to Hulhumalé three years back, and riding this ferry to and fro every day has been nothing but a pain. I developed a pilonidal sinus, and the doctor says it is sitting for such a long time and the terrible vibrations these boats give” said a young man in his late twenties.

Another couple who moved to Hulhumalé very recently had a different complaint, fearing the procedure of getting their motor bike on to the ferry – riding over a metal sheet placed against the ferry – could damage it over time.

Leevan Shareef, a vocal critic of the Hulhumalé ferry service on Twitter, sometimes has to spend two hours commuting between Hulhumalé and Malé. The MTCC does not increase ferry services during busy days – such as when political rallies are held in Malé – or on Friday evening, when a lot of people visit Hulhumalé, he complained.

“We complain to the ferry crew or staff at the counter, they will always say the issue will be brought to the attention of superiors. But there is no news of these superiors ever,” he said.

Mahdi Shahid, Deputy Principal of Lalé Youth International School, was among the first people to use the ferry service. His view was that the ferries have improved in the past ten years.

“Looking back, I would say it has actually improved a lot. Back then the ferry docked at the far north of the island, there were no trees, there was nothing over there. And we had to walk all the way from there to the school. It was a very small ferry then, but now the ferries are bigger and they travel more frequently,” Shahid explained.

“I think the current service would be okay, if the population wasn’t increasing so rapidly. but with the current population growth I think there should be an increase in number of ferries now. What I’m looking for is getting on the ferry and leaving without having to wait there for so long,” he added.

Currently the ferries operate between 05:30am and 02:30am, with eighty-two rounds between the two islands every day except for Fridays when ferries services are interrupted briefly for prayers.

Not profitable

Though the MTCC was unwilling to discuss the ferry service with the media, some ferry crew and staff noted that there were many challenges facing the company.

One such issue was that of Malé harbor, which they noted did not allow several ferries to operate simultaneously. “Sometimes we have to wait five minutes outside the harbor entrance, waiting for other ferries including those leaving for Hulhulé [the airport island] to leave,” said one crew member.

Four months ago, ferryboat owners – who lease their boats to the MTCC – went on strike after a failure to receive payments. The MTCC blamed this on delays in receiving payments from various government projects undertaken in various parts of the country. The company has often reiterated that its operations are not profitable at current rates. Ferry rates have risen at least twice since operations began in 2004, though other attempts to increase prices have been met with protests from Hulhumalé residents, usually ending with interventions from the city council and HDC.

In 2012, transport services in the Malé region contributed to thirteen percent of the MTCC’s operating profits, however the net loss in this sector has been gradually increasing over the past five years. The loss for transport services in the Male’ region in 2012 was reported to be MVR15.69 million (US$1 million).

Finding a solution

While accepting there are challenges in providing this service, Malé City Mayor “Maizan” Ali Manik (Alibe) said that a lack of profitability should not result in a bad service or higher fares.

“They always say they are operating ferries at loss. Yes, but services should be provided even at loss. All services provided by the state cannot be for profit,” Alibe said.

The MTCC could turn this around if they would invest in lands provided to them to subsidise these services, said the mayor. The ferry terminal land in both Malé and nearby Villingili islands were given to MTCC free of charge, and the plot for Hulhumalé terminal was given at ‘a very small rate’ according to HDC. The rent for businesses at ferry terminals – including the popular Sea House Cafe’ – goes to the MTCC.

“They can develop these land make profit in many ways” Alibe said, assuring that the city council was ready to help the MTCC in any such ventures.

Alibe stated his belief that the ferry service is gradually improving, and that some of the ferries were now of a high standard. However, if the MTCC is unable to fulfil its promises to improve the services by themselves, a second party might have be brought in, said the mayor.

The Housing Development Corporation

The MTCC has been providing public ferry and bus services for the Hulhumalé community since its inception, under an understanding with the HDC, which is currently in the process of formulating a formal agreement between the two companies. The services were provided for nearly ten years without any formal agreement.

Highlighting the HDC’s role in the ferry service, Deputy Managing Director Mohamed Shahid said the corporation does not get involved in business operations of some services such as the ferry operation in Hulhuamalé.

“We share [with MTCC] information regarding the population here and we try to provide adequate facilities for [serving] that [population]… we know that due to resources limitations there are some issues in both ferry and bus service,” he said.

According to Shahid, a set of standards and timings for operating bus and ferry services have been prepared and shared with the MTCC. The regulatory authority for travel operations of all ferry services, however, is the Transport Authority which has developed its own guidelines.

HDC Deputy Director Abdulla Fayaz said they were also looking into issues with ferry services, and communicating with the MTCC to resolve concerns raised by the public: “We do conduct surveys and maintain statistics regarding customers…this information is also shared with MTCC.”

Hope…

Despite the optimism expressed by both the HDC and the city council with regards to improving the quality of  services, many people who frequent these ferries remained sceptical.

The current government has joined the prior three administrations in pledging to connect Hulhumalé and Malé  with a bridge. The government is currently in the process of reviewing proposals to build this bridge. Until then, thousands of people continue to dream of a better ferry service.

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One Bangladeshi national killed, a second stabbed in Malé

A 22 year old Bangladeshi construction worker has been killed following a traffic collision in Hulhumalé, local media has reported.

Doctors in Sri Lanka were unable to save the man, who had been airlifted to the country after suffering severe head injuries when knocked from his bicycle by a car.

Police are working with the Housing Development Corporation to investigate the matter.

Meanwhile, a second Bangladeshi national has been stabbed during a mugging in Malé, say reports.

Three men were said to have attacked the truck driver, taking a mobile phone, MVR3,500 and leaving the victim with minor injuries. Police are investigating.

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