Maldives key partner for India in Indian Ocean region: EAM S Jaishankar

Male: The Maldives is a key partner for India in the Indian Ocean region and the two nations aspire to turn their cooperation into a modern partnership, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday.

Jaishankar's remarks came as he along with his Maldivian counterpart Moosa Zameer attended the handing over ceremony of Addu Reclamation and Shore Protection Project and inauguration of the 4-lane Detour Link road project facilitated by the Government of India under the Line of Credit of EXIM Bank.

"Maldives for us is a key partner in the Indian Ocean region. It is very much at the heart of our "Neighborhood First Policy" and it is therefore very natural that the cooperation between our two countries has moved beyond the traditional role and today really aspires to be a modern partnership," Jaishankar said.

"Our development cooperation is aimed at touching all facets of people's lives here and to find ways of bringing tangible benefits to their lives and it is really in many ways I think a statement in itself that we are today among the largest trading partners of Maldives," he said.

In the last few years, India has invested around USD 220 million in Addu which provides a fair idea of the importance that India attaches to regional development in the Maldives, the minister said.

"We are also witnessing greater investment flows from India to the Maldives, particularly in the tourism sector and we really appreciate that the diversification of the various sectors of cooperation is driven by the needs and priorities of the people of Maldives," he said.

India has partnered with the government of Maldives on the Addu Reclamation and Shore Protection project to find a sustainable way to develop it as a regional hub, he said.

The reclamation of 184 hectares of land was concluded earlier this year. This ambitious program of USD 80 million involves reclamation for tourism development purposes as well as for the overall economic development of Addu.

"This would translate in overall growth for the region, bringing in better opportunities for employment, entrepreneurship and trade," Jaishankar said.

"Another important project being carried out with Indian assistance, is the redevelopment of the Addu roads and Drainage Development with an outlay of USD 70 million. This project is in the last phase and once completed will provide a solution to problems of water logging and roads in Addu," the minister said.

"The Addu Detour link road that is being inaugurated today which is the cause for us gathering here, is an important component of this project and will significantly ease connectivity within the atoll," he said.

"Under the Indian line of credit, we have focused not only on developing Addu's facilities as a region but also connecting it to the outside world," Jaishankar said.

The government of Maldives under the Indian LOC is undertaking the redevelopment of the Gan International Airport, a connectivity project with an outlay of USD 29 million that will bridge the gap between Addu atoll and Maldives and the rest of the world. "It will boost investor confidence and increase local tourism in Gan and southern atolls with broader economic gains expected to materialize for many local communities, he said.

India places an equal emphasis on impactful community development projects in the Maldives.

"We are already partnering on 65 projects of which 12 are in Addu. Five of these projects have already been delivered. We are happy to see the success of this high-impact community development project model, expand its footprint and increase its presence on an exponential scale," he said.

Jaishankar also highlighted other projects being undertaken with India's assistance in the Maldives.

"I have also had the opportunity yesterday to jointly inaugurate, along with Foreign Minister Zameer, and hand over drinking water and sanitation projects across 28 islands to the Government of Maldives...," he said, adding that it is a significant project, bringing transformative change in the lives of thousands of residents of Maldives.

He also said that he visited the site of the Greater Male Connectivity Project, which is India's flagship project in this country and is progressing well.

"I'm also pleased to note that the work on the ambitious Hanimaadhoo Airport Redevelopment Project is also underway, and the project is scheduled to be completed soon. Construction activity on 4,000 housing units in Hulhumalé is also progressing well," he added.

"Investment in physical infrastructure is but the first step that will bear fruits when it is evenly matched with investment in human resource development. India has significantly scaled up its training and capacity-building cooperation," he said.

India remains open to the evolving needs and priorities of its Maldivian friends and the two governments endeavour to provide customised solutions to their requirements.

He also congratulated the government and people of Maldives in particular, the people in southern Maldives, in Addu, on these two projects.

"They stand as a testimony to the defining theme of our partnership, which is ‘Imagined by Maldives, Delivered by India’. I'm confident that these projects will have a transformative impact on the economy of the region, and help spur development for many generations to come," he added.

"India Maldives Friendship is people-centric," Jaishankar said in a post on X giving details of the India-assisted projects in the Maldives.

"India shares its developmental experiences with its neighbours," he added.