The government’s decision to bring all relevant agencies under a single umbrella has been a significant step towards tackling the longstanding issue of undocumented expatriates , the Minister of Homeland Security and Technology, Ali Ihsaan has said.
Speaking to PSM News, Minister Ihsaan said the number of undocumented expatriates residing in the Maldives had increased exponentially because the relevant agencies had not been working together to solve the problem in the past.
"I think the enforcement work has not been successful in the past because previous governments had allowed relevant agencies to work solo. For example, Immigration had been working separately, Police separately, Labor Relations Authority separately, he explained.
However, unlike in the past, the Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology, Immigration Department, Maldives Police Service (MPS) and Labour Relations Authority (LRA) along with several other related agencies have been working together as a “Home Team”, according to the Minister.
In addition, the establishment of police presence in every inhabited island before the end of the year will further strengthen the system of using biometric technology to identify undocumented expats in the islands and enhance enforcement efforts, he added.
"Now we can bring synergy that was lacking before. We can bring enforcement authority that was not there before. And we can bring the penetration that was not there before to all the islands across the country,” the Minister said.
Minister Ihsaan said the public is now beginning to see results of the government’s extensive efforts to address the immigrants issue, expressing confidence that this Administration will establish strong mechanisms in all islands across the country to manage and monitor foreign expatriate workers.