Addu City Council has kicked off the Destination Addu Summit with more than 100 participants. The Destination Addu Summit: One Brand One Story is held at Addu Equator Village.
The summit, which began with 110 participants, will hold a wide range of discussions on the obstacles and difficulties in expanding tourism in Addu City. The opening ceremony of the summit was attended by the Minister of Tourism Ibrahim Faisal and the Minister of Cities, Local Government and Public Works Adam Shareef Umar.
Mayor of Addu City Council Ali Nizar called on the people of the city to work together to expand the tourism sector in the city. He assured that the city council will provide the public with the necessary assistance in their endeavours. Nizar also stated that Addu City is the place where the land allocated for tourism is least expensive.
Noting that the council is working with the government to develop tourism in the city, Nizar stated that it cannot be achieved by solely relying on the number of arrivals to the capital city, Male’. He stated that Addu needs to create reasons as to why the tourists needs to visit the city.
Addu currently has three operational resorts. While the city also has operational guesthouses, various plans have been made to expand tourism in the city. As such, the government has launched tourism zones in the city with plans also made to expand local tourism.
Furthermore, the biggest tourism development plan of the city to date, Hankede Integrated Tourism Project has also been launched, with additional plans to implement tourism projects in three islands reclaimed for the purpose of tourism development. A coastal tourism project will also be implemented in the city.