Shafraz Naeem has completed a 50-hour underwater dive in the Ocean 6/50 event held to celebrate the golden jubilee of Maldives tourism this year.
Shafraz Naeem completed the full two-day immersion on the afternoon of February 27, and achieved the national and regional record for the longest open saltwater scuba dive. Ocean 6/50 was an extreme dive event held in Kudagiri, Kaafu Atoll, which aimed to call attention to the damage done by plastic pollution to the country's marine ecosystems and to promote alternatives to plastic as well as sustainable and environment friendly practices within Maldivian communities.
The event was held as part of the celebrations of the golden jubilee of the Maldives tourism industry. As part of the Ocean 6/50 event, Shafraz Naeem spent 50 hours six metres underwater at Kuda Giri.
Shafraz is an ex-military dive instructor with a 27-year career in the diving industry.
He is an experienced TDI/SDI, PADI and SSI instructor and has trained divers in the Maldivian Coast Guard, Special Forces and Marines. He has extensive knowledge about the Maldivian marine ecosystem and has explored deep cave systems and reefs in the Maldives. He is also an award-winning underwater photographer featured in international and local publications and has 14 years of experience in the field of underwater photography.
The event brought together international and local diving community and environmental researchers and advocates to raise awareness and promote meaningful solutions to the issues of plastic pollution and the diminishing marine ecosystem.