Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation Aishath Nahula has stated the aviation sector and the economy is recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. She made the remarks in her address to celebrate International Civil Aviation Day.
In her address, Minister Nahula said the recovery was only possible due to the long-term planning and determination of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. The minister said the year began with plans to increase the efforts in the civil aviation sector and to overcome the economic downturn following the COVID-19 pandemic. She said steps were taken to strengthen health safety and precautions and conduct more flights under the new-normal conditions and reach the number of flight operations during 2019 while also making further improvements. She said the ministry is conducting flight operations in the civil aviation sector in accordance with its ministerial declaration, which was formulated after discussions with officials from the facilitation and safety sectors.
Furthermore, Minister Nahula said the main focus for this year was for the Maldives aviation sector to return to pre-pandemic levels and further expand the sector. In this regard, the minister said the efforts of the government involved expanding airline operations and developing airports, adding that three Maldivian airlines have been approved to operate international flights. She said the development of Velana International Airport (VIA) was conducted this year, which involved upgrading the airport apron. She also noted the assistance provided by international authorities to develop and expand the civil aviation sector in the Maldives.
International Civil Aviation Day has been celebrated by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) since December 7, 1994.