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Parliament approves 19 of the 22 Cabinet ministers

The Parliament of the Maldives has approved 19 of the 22 Cabinet ministers. The votes were taken at the 2nd Sitting of the Special Session of 2024 held on January 29.

The Cabinet ministers that the Parliament approved are:

• Minister of Defence - Mohamed Ghassan Maumoon
• Minister of Foreign Affairs - Moosa Zameer
• Minister of Homeland Security and Technology - Ali Ihusaan
• Minister of Finance - Dr Mohamed Shafeeq
• Minister of Education - Dr Ismail Shafeeu
• Minister of Health - Dr Abdulla Khaleel
• Minister of Economic Development and Trade - Mohamed Saeed
• Minister of Fisheries and Ocean Resources - Ahmed Shiyam
• Minister of Tourism - Ibrahim Faisal
• Minister of Social and Family Development - Dr Aishath Shiham
• Minister of Sports, Fitness and Recreation - Abdulla Rafiu
• Minister of Climate Change, Environment and Energy - Thoriq Ibrahim
• Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation - Mohamed Ameen
• Minister of Dhivehi Language, Culture and Heritage - Adam Naseer Ibrahim
• Minister of Higher Education, Labour and Skills Development - Dr Maryam Mariya
• Minister of Construction and Infrastructure - Dr Abdulla Muththalib
• Minister of Agriculture and Animal Welfare - Dr Aishath Rameela
• Minister of Youth Empowerment, Information and Arts - Ibrahim Waheed
• Minister of Cities, Local Government and Public Works - Adam Shareef

The Cabinet ministers that the Parliament rejected are:

• Attorney General - Uz Ahmed Usham
• Minister of Islamic Affairs - Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed
• Minister of Housing, Land and Urban Development - Dr Ali Haidar Ahmed

The Cabinet ministers took their oath of office on November 17. In addition, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu created four new ministries and changed the names of nine existing ministries. President Muizzu submitted the names of the 22 Cabinet ministers to Parliament for parliamentary approval on November 20.

The parliamentary government oversight committee approved all 22 ministers. However, the Parliament opted to refer the matter back to the committee on December 18 after some members stated that the government had not submitted the mandate of the ministries to the Parliament at the time.