Monitoring the Maldives’ borders and ensuring security 24 hours a day is difficult and costly, Coastguard Commander Colonel Mohamed Ibrahim told the press today.
Speaking to reporters following the opening ceremony of a three-day maritime seminar in Malé, Ibrahim noted that the islands of the Maldives were surrounded by open waters, which covered a territory “larger than South Korea.”
The coastguard together with customs and police were utilising limited resources to the best of the institutions’ ability, he added.
Surveillance operations were conducted once a month with assistance from neighbouring countries, the colonel noted.
More than 30 representatives from state institutions are participating in the seminar, which is conducted by Transport Authority of Maldives (TAM) in conjunction with the International Maritime Organisation.
Ibrahim meanwhile expressed confidence that “the speed and quality of services provided to the public by technical experts” would improve as a result of the seminar.
In addition to formulating a national plan for search and rescue operations, participants at the seminar are reportedly expected to discuss how to reduce response times for disaster management from 48 to 24 hours.
