Minister of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture Dr. Hussain Rasheed Hassan has attended a meeting organised by the Ihavandhoo Masveringe Gulhun (IMAGU) held in Ihavandhoo, Haa Alifu Atoll.
During the meeting, Minister Hassan listened to the concerns of the fishermen and discussed the plans to address them. He said that Ihavandhoo is a famous fishing island in the north of the country with a population of over 3,500 and the majority are engaged in fishing. He also noted that the economy of the island is mainly based on the fishing sector.
The main concern of the fishermen in Ihavandhoo is the difficulties in getting ice and processing their catch. The fishermen expressed concern that they have to spend a lot of time in queues to process fish. In addition, the fishermen also pointed out that there are difficulties in getting enough ice from the north as there is only one cold storage in Ihavandhoo. In this regard, the fisheries minister assured the fishermen that their concerns will be resolved very soon.
The government is making efforts to solve the difficulties faced by the fishermen in Ihavandhoo. The ice storage facility by the Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company Limited (MIFCO) has been developed to produce 50 tonnes of ice per day. The government is also working to develop a modern port at a cost of USD3.1 million from the state budget to solve the space constraints of the port.