Minister of Environment, Climate Change, and Technology Aminath Shauna has highlighted the importance of environmental preservation for progress.
In her statement to mark World Environment Day, Minister Shauna said the Maldives need infrastructural developments that can withstand the effects of climate change. The minister said one of the main environmental issues in the Maldives is beach pollution, which harms marine life and the fishing industry, as well as public health. In order to prevent beach pollution, she said the government is working to improve waste management by banning the use of single-use plastics.
Minister Shauna further stated waste management centres will be required to turn biodegradable waste into compost, export recyclable waste, and incinerate burnable waste. Highlighting the government's plan to preserve 20 percent of the Maldivian oceans and connected areas by 2030, she said that the government has currently 73 areas under protection and is advocating internationally for protecting the oceans.
Furthermore, Minister Shauna said the Maldives is seeing the devastating effects of climate change such as coral bleaching, and tidal flooding in islands, and that the effects of global warming affects every Maldivian citizen. She said efforts related to environment preservation and ecosystem restoration will benefit every Maldivian and that more work can be done through the decentralised system.
The World Environment Day is marked annually on June 5. This year's World Environment Day is focused on ecosystem restoration, with the United Nations launching a ten-year global push to prevent, halt and reverse ecosystem degradation.