The state-issued allowance for those with disabilities will be increased, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has said. He made the announcement in his Presidential Address at the start of the first session of Parliament for the year on Thursday.
The president said currently, there is no official registry of persons with disabilities. However, the government is working on compiling a national registry that would include information on the total number of people with disabilities and their details. He said that the registry would be the key resource for providing people with disabilities with treatment, rehabilitation, therapy, and other services.
The president further said the disability allowance would be increased during the year's final quarter. However, he did not specify the revised allowance. An allowance of MVR 2,000 per month is currently issued to those with disabilities.
The disability allowance increment announcement came while those with disabilities had requested the president to increase the allowance amount. In a meeting held with the president on December 16 last year, those with special needs noted that the allowance is not adequate to top up their daily living expenses, which causes them further challenges. They also stated that while there are significant challenges in accessing treatment and other services across the Maldives, increasing the monthly allowance would ease their burden.
