Minister of Home Affairs and Culture Ali Ihsaan has stated that with the recent amendments to laws, exposing children to criminal environments is now considered a crime and those who do so will be arrested and legal action will be taken against them. Speaking at a forum, Minister of Home Affairs and Culture Ali Ihsaan said that so far, about 400 children have been recorded as being in criminal environments. The minister also said that the number of such children and those recorded as being at risk of committing crimes is over 1000.

“If we don’t take care of these 1000 children, in the future we will see them in jail. Or committing such serious crimes. That’s why we are establishing an island called Hope Island,” the minister said. The minister said that under the Hope Island project, all children who are active in criminal environments and those at risk of being exposed to criminal environments will be brought out to society as good people. Hope Island isd people. Hope Island is an island being developed with facilities needed to bring out children who commit crimes to society as morally upright, beneficial members of society. The minister said that to keep children away from criminal environments, many social issues need to be resolved. This includes solving the problem of housing shortages and preventing the exploitation of legal protections for children, the minister said.

The minister noted that while exposing children to criminal environments was not previously considered a crime, with the recent amendments to the law, action can now be taken. Therefore, Minister Ihsaan said that those who expose children to criminal environments will be arrested, prosecuted, and legal action will be taken against them. The minister said that even until Hope Island is established, some programs are being conducted for children in criminal environments. In this regard, the minister noted that psychosocial intervention programs targeting such children are being conducted. The minister also said that work is being done to train people to provide various psychological treatments needed for such children.

The government has decided to lower the age of criminal responsibility in criminal cases to 14 years. This is also an important decision made by the government to keep children away from criminal environments.”

Minister of Agriculture and Wildlife Dr. Mariyam Mariya has stated that research is being conducted at the Hanimaadhoo Agricultural Center to solve the problem of mealy bugs affecting plants. The Minister said this while speaking at the “Ahaa” forum of ministers, jointly organized by the President’s Office and Public Service Media to provide information to the public. In a question from the public at the “Ahaa” forum, it was highlighted that there are many challenges in agriculture, one of which is the mealy bug infestation, and inquired about the solution to this issue.

Responding to this question, Minister of Agriculture and Wildlife Dr. Mariyam Mariya said that efforts are underway to solve the mealy bug problem. She mentioned that pesticides for plants have been received from an agricultural center in China, and these will be distributed to the islands very soon. The Minister also stated that research is being conducted at the Hanimaadhoo Agricultural Center to solve the mealy bug problem, and many efforts are being made to raise awareness as well.

“We have leaflets in our ministry, information that can be shared. We receive many emails from different atolls and islands requesting information. We are sharing these leaflets. We are also sharing information through our social media platforms, TikTok, X (Twitter), and Facebook,” the Minister said. Minister Dr. Mariya stated that this is related to climate change and food security. She added that the ministry is working on establishing food security using smart technology, following the methods used in other countries of the world.

In this regard, Minister Dr. Mariya said that projects are being carried out in HDh, HA, and Sh atolls through the MAP project, and in these programs, farmers are being taught about soil technology, plant care, and marketing-related matters.

Attorney General Ahmed Usham has stated that agreements made with companies will be terminated if work is not progressing on islands leased for various purposes. The Attorney General said this while answering a question during the Ministers’ Ask Forum. During the Ask Forum, someone raised a question about Sun Travels company being leased N. Meenawaru and Udhdhoo, and then having the agreement for one island terminated and the agreement for the other island not renewed.

Responding to that question, Attorney General Ahmed Usham said that N. Meenawaru and Udhdhoo were leased based on a specific proposal submitted, with an agreement drawn up for specific work to be carried out. He also said that surveys conducted by the government showed that adequate work as per the agreement was not being carried out on these islands.

Therefore, Usham said that since Udhdhoo was an island leased for 25 years, it was decided not to renew the agreement when the lease period expired. He also said that for Meenawaru, as work was not progressing according to the agreement, all procedures in the agreement were completed, notice was given, and then the agreement was terminated. The Attorney General said that not just these two islands, but there are other islands and lagoons where work is not progressing according to agreements. He added that after reviewing these agreements, agreements for islands and lagoons where work is not progressing will be terminated, and that the work of reviewing agreements is currently ongoing.

“We are working on reclaiming islands that are being misused by the government. Islands have not been leased only for agricultural purposes. There are lagoons and islands leased for tourism purposes. Among these too, there are many places where work is not progressing,” said the Attorney General. N. Meenawaru was leased to Sun Travels on February 6, 2010. The island was leased for agriculture and value-added processing work, or to produce and market value-added products. The government has noted that despite repeated instructions to correct issues that were being carried out in violation of the agreement on that island, they have not been corrected.

In addition, Dh. Udhdhoo was leased for commercial purposes. When the agreement period for that island expired and the island reverted to the government, the government has decided to make it an island for the people of Dh. Atoll to travel to.

Minister of Higher Education, Vocational Training and Skills Development Dr. Ali Haidar Ahmed has stated that only 40% of students are repaying the loans provided by the government for higher education. The Minister said this while answering a question posed by MP Ibrahim Hussain of Fuvahmulah South constituency in today’s parliament session, regarding whether student loans are being repaid regularly.

The Minister of Higher Education, Vocational Training and Skills Development highlighted that very few students who receive loans are repaying them regularly. He stated that only 40% of students are repaying the loans after completing their studies. The Minister emphasized that this money is owed to the state and said that they will soon decide on measures to recover these funds.

“As of April this year, 157 million rufiyaa has been disbursed as loans. There are significant issues with repayment. They are not being repaid properly and on time,” said Dr. Ali Haidar Ahmed, Minister of Higher Education, Vocational Training and Skills Development. The state provides loans every year for higher education and training. Repayment of these loans is supposed to begin 6 months after completing studies.

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has decided to make the loans for higher education compliant with Islamic principles. Along with this, the President has decided to completely remove the 1% administrative fee that was being charged with the loans. Furthermore, it has been decided not to charge any additional amount beyond the loan amount disbursed.

In addition, the President has instructed to adjust the loan amounts of previous borrowers by deducting the administrative fee from the remaining balance to be paid. Last April, a registry was created for Maldivian students studying abroad, in addition to those studying on government scholarships and loans. The Ministry of Higher Education, Vocational Training and Skills Development has revealed that by the end of last December, more than 2,000 students had registered in this database. This includes 915 male students and 1,201 female students.

The Student Loan Scheme for students studying abroad allows students to study in any country of their choice. These loans are provided for studies in fields that are most needed in the Maldives.

The Indian government has extended the repayment period for a $50 million Treasury bill obtained through the State Bank of India by an additional year. In a press release, the Indian High Commission in Maldives stated that at the request of the Maldivian government, they have decided to extend the repayment period for the $50 million Treasury bill obtained by the Maldivian government through the State Bank of India. They also mentioned that this extension was granted without any additional interest.

Acknowledging the budget support assistance provided by the Indian government to Maldives, Foreign Minister Dr. Abdulla Khaleel shared a post on social media expressing gratitude to India’s External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and the Indian government.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the Indian government provided $50 million in budget support to the Maldivian government by extending the repayment period of the $50 million Treasury bill obtained through SBI for an additional year, starting from May 12, 2025. The ministry highlighted that this generous assistance further demonstrates the long-standing close friendship between the Indian and Maldivian governments.

The Maldivian government acknowledges the generous assistance provided by the Indian government as budget support and specifically notes that this recent aid will provide relief to the ongoing fiscal reform efforts of the Maldivian government. Since March 2019, the Indian government has extended several such Treasury bills through SBI without interest. In addition to postponing the repayment of T-bills, the Indian government has also arranged a currency swap facility to improve Maldives’ reserves.

Among the T-bills sold to SBI, India also postponed the repayment of $50 million that was due last September. That $50 million is now due to be repaid next September.