The government has decided to reclaim 30 hectares of land in Gulhifalhu for the development of facilities to accommodate up to 40,000 expatriates.
The decision was revealed in the report prepared by Parliamentary Committee on National Security and Foreign Relations. In the report, the committee highlighted the measures taken by the government to resolve the issues faced by expatriates working in the country.
Citing information received from the Ministry of Economic Development, the committee stated the government has decided to reclaim 30 hectares of land in Gulhifalhu to develop an expatriate village, which can accommodate up to 40,000 expatriates. The committee stated food and accommodation expenses of the expatriates accommodated in the new facilities will be covered by their employers.
Furthermore, the committee noted the government has been developing new accommodation facilities to relocate expatriates living in congested spaces in Male’ City. As such, the committee noted the development of an accommodation facility with a capacity of 2,000 people, which is expected to be completed this month.
The committee also noted the economic ministry is conducting discussions with the Labour Relations Authority (LRA) to resolve the issues faced by expatriates who are losing their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The committee also highlighted the efforts of the government to arrange food and essential items for expatriates who have been unable to purchase food due to the lockdown imposed in the Greater Male’ Region.
The report prepared by the committee stated the economic ministry has been facing difficulties in repatriating expatriates who registered amid the pandemic, as some of them do not have any valid documents. However, the report noted 68 Bangladeshi nationals have been repatriated with the help of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives Immigration and the High Commission of Bangladesh, while efforts are underway to repatriate another 150 expatriates.
Citing information from Maldives Immigration, the report stated 179,122 expatriates were recorded to be working in the Maldives by August 2019. The report further stated an average of 115 new expatriates arrive in the country on a daily basis.
Maldives Immigration predicted there are about 63,000 undocumented expatriates living in the Maldives. Over 40,000 expatriates had applied for the regularisation programme conducted by the economic ministry last year.