United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Resident Representative to the Maldives, Dr. Mohamed El-Munir Safieldin has paid a farewell call on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
During the meeting, the President emphasised that protecting and promoting children’s rights in the Maldives is a key priority of his administration. Hethanked the UNICEF Resident Representative for all he has done to protect and promote children’s rights during his tenure in the Maldives, especially over the past year, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
President Solih also relayed his gratitude for UNICEF’s past and ongoing work to assist children in the Maldives, including through projects on child abuse awareness, internet safety for children and child safety and nutrition. He expressed that he appreciated the exceptional leadership Dr. Safieldin provided in overseeing these projects and that he is keen to work with the Representative’s successor to build on this progress.
The UNICEF Resident Representative thanked the President for his remarks and congratulated the government on the many initiatives it has taken in the past two years to strengthen children’s rights in the Maldives, and the spirit of collaboration it has demonstrated towards working with UNICEF throughout. He highlighted the government’s efforts to eliminate plastic bottles in schools and for ratifying long overdue legislation such as the Child Rights Act and Juvenile Justice Act, which has transformed the child rights protection landscape in the Maldives. He also praised the government for its proactive and compassionate approach towards handling the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Resident Representative said that UNICEF is proud to continue working with the government of the Maldives to progress children’s rights. He added that the success of UNICEF’s efforts would not be possible without the active support of the Government of Maldives, and he praised the commitment that President Solih and First Lady Fazna Ahmed have demonstrated towards child rights issues.
Ending the call, the President reiterated his gratitude for Dr. Safieldin's passion and dedication towards child rights issues and wished him well on his next assignment. The UNICEF Representative reciprocated President Solih's warm sentiments and expressed his hope that the strong partnership between the Maldives and UNICEF would continue.