Seven areas of Baa atoll have been declared protected and the area of two previously protected areas have been extended.

A declaration was signed today between the Environment Ministry and the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) on the occasion of the World Environment Day, declaring the seven areas protected.

Many environmental projects have been conducted in Baa Atoll before and the atoll is noted for its biodiversity compared to all other atolls that make up the nation.

The areas protected under the declaration include an uninhabited island called Mendhu, the island’s reef and several other uninhabited islands surrounding the island covering a total of 200 metres.

Baa atoll Goidhoo swamp area, Maahuruvalhi Faru and the surrounding area isolated on the western side of the atoll, and the islands and reefs of Bathalaahura, Gaaganduhura and Vinanehfaruhura encompassing an area of 32 square kilometres are included in the list.

Under the declaration, an area known as Dhorukandu including an island called Mathifaruhura has gained protected status as well.

A kilometre of area surrounding a ship called ‘Kobin’ that was grounded on the northern side of the island of Baa atoll Fulhadhoo in 1602 has also been protected.

The span of Dhigalihaa area, which was protected in 1998, and the area around Baa atoll Hanifaru Island, which has been protected since 2009, has been extended today as well.

Dhigaligiri has been added to the Dhigalihaa protected area and Hanifaru has been included in the protected area around the island.

Speaking at a meeting held at the Housing Ministry today, Environment Minister Mohamed Aslam said Baa Atoll being one of the most biologically diverse atolls in the country has gained global attention.

The minister said United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has been suggested to recognise Baa Atoll as the Maldives very first biosphere reserve by July.

Biosphere reserves are globally recognised protected areas to promote sustainable protection of land and marine biodiversity.

Source: Haveeru News

The Maldives has decided to immediately and unilaterally withdraw from the New7Wonders of Nature scam because of the New7Wonders organiser’s demand for expensive license fees and sponsorship packages in order to compete meaningfully in the remainder of the competition.

“With regret, we are withdrawing from this competition because of the unexpected demands for large sums of money from the New7Wonders organisers. We no longer feel that continued participation in this competition is in the economic interests of the Maldives,” said Thoyyib Mohamed, Minister of State for Tourism, Arts and Culture, and Chairman of the Maldives Marketing and PR Corporation (MMPRC).

The Maldives originally agreed to participate in the New7Wonders of Nature competition in early 2009 and paid a participation administration fee of $199. However, the details of the joint initiatives and escalating costs were not clearly outlined prior to signing. Recently, the New7Wonders organisers have repeatedly asked the Maldives to pay significantly more money, including:

1. A Platinum sponsorship license fee at US $350,000.
2. Two Gold sponsorship license fees at US $210,000 each.
3. The sponsorship of a ‘World Tour’ event, whereby the Maldives would pay for a delegation of people to visit the country, provide hot air balloon rides, press trips, flights, accommodation, communications etc.
4. US $1,000,000 license fee for a national telecom provider to participate in New7Wonders campaign – later reduced to US $500,000 on appeal.
5. US $1,000,000 license fee for a Maldives based airline to display logo on aircraft.

The MMPRC repeatedly asked the New7Wonders organisers if there was a way to stay in the competition without paying significant sums of money. The New7Wonders organisers eventually stated that the Maldives could host a “protocol visit” for a delegation of the New7Wonders organisers, in which the Maldives would incur “flights and logistical costs etc.” The New7Wonders organisers pointed out, however, that “in our previous campaign for the man made Official New7Wonders of the World, all the winners had highly successful World Tour Events” and added “you do need sponsorship to participate fully in initiatives such as the World Tour event visit”

While the Maldives has invested considerable time and effort in campaigning for the New7Wonders of Nature competition, the country has not spent significant sums of money on the campaign. After extensive discussions with tourism industry stakeholders, the Maldives has decided to withdraw from the competition with immediate effect.

The Maldives would like to note the press release from UNESCO dated July 9, 2007 which states: “Although UNESCO was invited to support this (the previous“New7Wonders of the World” competition) project on several occasions, the Organisation decided not to collaborate”

The Maldives further notes concerns raised by lawyers acting for the Indonesia Ministry of Tourism, in regards to Komodo Island’s participation in the New7Wonders of Nature competition.

Finally, the Maldives is perplexed with the recent inconsistent patterns of the rankings of the competitors at this stage of the competition and the lack of detailed information and transparency as to how this is calculated.

Consequent upon appointment by the SAARC Council of Ministers, H. E. Ms. Fathimath Dhiyana Saeed of the Maldives assumed office as the Secretary-General of SAARC.

A former Attorney General of the Republic of Maldives and a former parliamentarian, H. E. Ms. Saeed is the tenth Secretary-General of SAARC and is the first woman to occupy this prestigious position. She was serving as Maldivian Government’s Envoy for South Asia just prior to assuming her new assignment in Kathmandu. She holds a Master’s Degree in Law from the Graduate School of Law and Politics, Osaka University, Japan.

The Secretaries-General of SAARC are appointed by the Council of Ministers upon nomination by a Member State on the basis of the principle of rotation in alphabetical order for a period of three years. Upon nomination by the Government of Maldives, the Thirty-third Session of the SAARC Council of Ministers held in Thimphu on 8-9 February 2011 had appointed H. E. Ms. Saeed to lead SAARC.

Talking to the media on arrival in Kathmandu, H. E. Ms. Saeed stated that she hopes to expand and empower the SAARC Secretariat to place further emphasis on implementation during her tenure.

Launched in December 1985, SAARC comprises of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka as its members.

Maldives extended a warm welcome to the 750,000th visitor to the country today. British citizen, Mrs. Daniela Ruth Selig arrived Maldives this morning by British Airways flight which landed at 0920hrs.

Mrs. Selig clocked the 750,000th visitor mark at the immigration counter where she was met by the officials of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts & Culture and the Maldives Tourism promotion Board and were presented with a beautiful flower bouquet and sash. Mrs. Selig arrived in the Maldives with her husband and two children. They were escorted with a warm welcome procession of traditional Boduberu beats and dance from the arrival terminal up to the VIP lounge where they were warmly welcomed by The Minister of State for Tourism, Arts & Culture Mr. Thoyyib Mohamed together with the senior officials of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, The Maldives Tourism Promotion Board and representatives of the Tourism Industry of Maldives.

At the VIP lounge, Mrs. Selig was presented with a gift and a special letter from the Minister of Tourism, Arts & Culture extending a warm welcome and offering a special holiday package for two in the Maldives within the coming year.

UK is one of the biggest generating market to the Maldives with a total of 95,586 arrivals to the Maldives from January to October. This is an increase of 9.4% compared to the same period of 2009. The 750,000th visitor being a British citizen is thought to create more interest and publicity to the destination especially amongst the British consumers.
Mrs. Selig is spending her holiday at Anantara Digu with her family. This is her second holiday in the Maldives.

The Maldivian government has apologised to a couple who were verbally abused by resort staff during a renewal of vows ceremony at Vilu Reef resort in the Maldives.

Ambassador Ms. Iruthisham Adam, from the Maldives embassy in Geneva, personally telephoned the couple, who have asked to remain anonymous, Friday afternoon to offer the government´s “profound and heartfelt apologies.”

“I informed the couple that the entire country is deeply shocked and saddened by what has happened. The Maldives is renowned for its warm hospitality and this incident has brought great shame upon our tourism industry and our country,” Ambassador Adam stated.

Ambassador Adam noted that the resort´s management have also extended their deep apologies to the couple and offered them compensation.

Ambassador Adam informed the couple that two members of the resort´s staff have been arrested by Maldives police, who are investigating the incident under a judicial warrant.

She noted that President Nasheed has ordered strict new guidelines to be introduced, which will regulate renewal of vows ceremonies in every hotel and resort in the country.

Ambassador Adam explained to the couple that government officials will sit around a table with Maldivian tourism industry representatives on Saturday morning, to ensure that such incidents do not happen again.

A video of the renewal of vows ceremony was posted on YouTube earlier this week and has caused a media storm within the Maldives and abroad.

In a national radio address on Friday morning, President Nasheed expressed his “disgust” at the incident and described the behaviour of the resort staff involved as “absolutely disgraceful”.

ENDS

Paul Roberts
Advisor on International Media & Communications
4th Floor
The President’s Office
Boduthakurufaanu Magu
Male’
Republic of Maldives