Vice President Faisal Naseem has stated the developmental efforts were undertaken by state entities even during the most trying of times. He made the statement while speaking at the special ceremony held to mark the 35th anniversary of Maldives Ports Limited (MPL). He officiated the ceremony, where the state-owned company celebrated the hard work and commitment of its staff and honoured long-serving staff members.
Speaking at the ceremony, the vice president said President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih gives precedence to capacity building and human resources and focuses on alleviating the situation of welfare among the people. Noting the efforts by MPL towards capacity building and human resource management, he highlighted that it is one of the key areas of government expenditure and applauded MPL for introducing company scholarships. He also said the Maldives is highly dependent upon foreign imports to drive its economy and that much of the goods imported to the country are delivered as sea freight consignments.
Vice President Naseem noted the difficulties faced in shipping goods during the lockdown phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and applauded the remarkable work done by MPL staff in managing the inflow of goods in order to avoid a shortage of food items in the country. Concluding his remarks, the vice president urged all MPL employees to collectively work towards the progress of the country despite ideological differences.
During the ceremony, Vice President Naseem gave away commemorative plaques to long-serving MPL staff who retired from their duties and handed over scholarships to the successful staff members.