Housing Ministry on Monday said special allocations would be made in next year’s budget for developmental projects in Addu City.
Addu City, with the second largest population after the capital Malé City, is currently seeing numerous development projects ranging from socio-economic and infrastructure development. Some of the infrastructure development projects currently underway in Addu City include land reclamation, and water and sewerage projects.
Abdullah Ziyad, Senior Policy Executive at the Housing Ministry, said the projects currently undertaken in Addu City were not financed through a specific budget precisely allocated for the city. “The Housing Ministry plans to make special allocations in next year’s budget for the development of the city,” he said.
One of the recent projects conducted in Addu City was the reclamation of 50 hectares of land in Feydhoo and Maradhoo-Feydhoo wards. Ziyad said revetment work to protect the newly reclaimed area is now ongoing, and is expected to be concluded by the end of the year.
According to the Ministry, the newly reclaimed land will ease space constraints in Feydhoo and Maradhoo-Feydhoo, in addition to other parts of the city.
The area is to be utilised for residential and commercial purposes including the development of guesthouses and a sports arena. The Housing Ministry has completed surveys, and will soon draw up a land-use plan. The Land Building and Municipal Service Department in Addu City is mandated with overseeing all developmental projects in the city.
Housing flats developed in Hithadhoo and Maradhoo-Feydhoo of as part of the Government’s social housing scheme have now been completed. Housing Ministry said it has received 450 applications for 249 housing flats developed under the first phase of the project.