The Maldives and India sign six important agreements, demonstrating a pivotal point of progress in the bilateral relationship between the two countries.
President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi presided over the ceremony which took place at the Hyderabad House in New Delhi, India. The agreements exchanged are a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Capacity Building and Training of Members of Local Councils and Women Development Committee and Staff of Local Government Authority, between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives and the Ministry of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj of India. The purpose of the MoU is to improve the technical competence and develop the skills of local council members, women's development committees, and other staff in relevant areas of local governance.
Additionally, an MoU for cooperation in the area of cyber security was signed between the Maldivian foreign ministry and the Indian Ministry of Railways, Communications and Electronics and Information Technology. The MoU aims to promote closer cooperation and the exchange of information pertaining to cyber security in accordance with relevant domestic laws, rules, and regulations. It is based on equality, reciprocity, and mutual benefit between the Maldives and India.
Other agreements include an MoU on collaboration in potential fishing zone forecast capacity building, between the Ministry of Economic Development of the Maldives and the Ministry of Earth Sciences of India, and an MoU on cooperation in the field of disaster management, between the Ministry of Finance of the Maldives and the High Commission of India to the Maldives, that aims to strengthen efforts in the field of crisis management between the two countries.
Furthermore, an agreement was exchanged between EXIM Bank of India and the Maldivian finance ministry for the development of police infrastructure, and a Letter of Intent on Buyer’s Credit funding approval of USD119 million for additional 2,000 social housing units to be constructed in Hulhumale’ was signed between the bank and the ministry.