In a decisive move to accelerate government-funded initiatives, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has officially ratified the newly passed amendment to the Decentralization Act.
The legislation, which successfully cleared Parliament on 26 August, grants the government broader authority to reclaim and utilise land for public infrastructure, while simultaneously establishing safeguards for local investments.
Under the key provisions of the newly enacted bill, the Cabinet is now empowered to remove specific lands or sites from a local council’s jurisdiction to facilitate government development projects. Significantly, these plots can be reclaimed even before the physical development plan for the respective island or city has received official approval or implementation.
To ensure seamless execution, the legislation mandates that local councils provide full cooperation for projects serving the collective public interest. It explicitly bars councils from acting in ways that obstruct these initiatives without reasonable cause or making decisions that could result in project suspensions.
However, addressing concerns raised during the legislative process, the Parliamentary Decentralization Committee successfully introduced a protective measure during the review stage. The final amendment stipulates that fair compensation must be provided by the relevant government ministry for any existing investments made on land reclaimed by the state.