The Indian High Commission organised an International Yoga Day event at the Taj Maldives resort with more than 500 people and State Minister for Sports Ibrahim Amir as the chief guest, drawing condemnation from religious scholars who deem the activity to be a Hindu ritual forbidden by Islam. It came days after the Prosecutor General's office withdrew terrorism charges raised against a ruling party lawmaker and two preachers over the storming of the 2022 Yoga Day event in Malé.
The infrastructure ministry approved the use of Sultan Park for an MDP rally to welcome back former president Nasheed, after the opposition party's chairman accused the government of refusing to arrange a venue and threatened to gather near the president's residence.
The upcoming Maldives Food Carnival will feature a Liverpool Fan Zone with a special appearance by club legend Dirk Kuyt, MMPRC announced. The three-day event is due to begin on Wednesday. The Fan Zone will include live mini-games, a seated footie challenge and a video booth for fans to send messages to their favourite players.
Speaking at the Merck Foundation First Ladies Initiative in Dubai, First Lady Sajidha Mohamed announced the formation of an NGO to tackle social issues.
Despite spending MVR 4 billion (US$ 259 million) annually on education, O' Level exam results have not improved since 2013 with more than half of students failing to pass five subjects, Education Minister Dr Ismail Shafeeu said at the High Achievers' Award ceremony, noting a 10 percent gender gap with female students outperforming their male peers, many of whom "get left behind and drop out." The government plans to address root causes – mainly poor results at primary school and a shortage of teachers – and to increase the per-pupil-expenditure, he said.
Dharumavantha Hospital signed an MoU with the Children's Hospital of the Soochow University in China to improve paediatric surgical care.
About nine local companies raised US$ 29 million from the capital market over the past two years, the CMDA CEO told state media.
The airport operator launched a countdown for the opening of the new passenger terminal on July 26.
