The National Social Protection Agency (NSPA) has reported that financial assistance from the Zakat Fund has been extended to 24 individuals requiring bone marrow transplants over the past three years. The disclosure, covering 2023, 2024 and the current year, 2025, underscores the fund’s growing role in underwriting critical medical interventions.
Government assessments indicate that the Zakat Fund has become a cornerstone of the administration’s broader strategy to confront the country’s high incidence of thalassaemia. Relative to its population size, the Maldives records one of the highest global densities of children living with the condition. Addressing this crisis has required a policy framework that strengthens treatment services while ensuring residents can access bone marrow transplants free of charge.
Under this directive, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s government has pledged to send 10 children overseas annually for bone marrow procedures financed through state aid. The regulatory framework enabling this initiative was formalised in 2024 through an agreement between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. Children are sent abroad for these life-saving operations under the auspices of the Zakat Fund.
NSPA data reveal steady growth in the number of patients supported, though expenditure fluctuates with treatment costs. In 2023, five individuals received assistance totalling USD 249,740. That figure rose sharply in 2024, when nine patients were supported at a cost of USD 473,840. Preliminary figures for 2025 show that 10 individuals have already benefited, with spending recorded at USD 98,220.
The government is reinforcing the national health infrastructure dedicated to thalassaemia care. Specialised services for children are being expanded, and the ageing Thalassaemia Centre, which had operated for three decades, has been relocated to the Orange Hiyaa building in Hulhumalé. Plans are advancing to construct a new hospital in Malé dedicated exclusively to thalassaemia treatment.
In a strategic shift, the government has introduced a mandate requiring all students to undergo thalassaemia testing upon graduation. Officials say the measure will provide a comprehensive assessment of carrier status across the population, laying the groundwork for long-term disease control.