It appears increasingly unlikely that the reclamation of Giravarufalhu, initiated under the previous administration’s housing policy to provide land for Male’ natives, will be completed by the end of this month as scheduled.
Under the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) administration, the project was initially contracted to the Maldives Fund Management Corporation (MFMC), which completed the reclamation of 54 hectares.
Following a suspension of the project, the current administration reassigned the project to the Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) to reclaim the remaining 97 hectares, with work commencing on January 31, 2025.
The government’s most recent deadline for the completion of this project was set for May 31.
Responding to a parliamentary inquiry on April 15, Housing Minister Abdulla Muththalib said that 98 hectares of the total 169-hectare project had been reclaimed. He expressed confidence that the remaining portion would be finished by the end of May.
The reclamation of Giravarufalhu was being carried out by three dredgers from Boskalis: the Oranje, the Queen of the Netherlands, and the Prins der Nederlanden. However, Adhadhu has learned that all three vessels have now departed from the Maldives.
A source familiar with the matter said the final dredger left the country yesterday. It is understood that the departure of the vessels followed a mutual assessment by both parties that the project could not proceed under the current circumstances.
The current administration’s initial deadline for completing the Giravarufalhu reclamation was the end of February. When that target was missed, President Mohamed Muizzu announced in a social media post on March 21 that the work would be finished by the end of April.
On April 15, the government revised the completion date once more, pledging to finish the reclamation by the end of this month.
