The Maldives Industrial Fisheries Company (MIFCO) has ceased all operations on K. Kanduoiygiri.
Fisheries Minister Ahmed Shiyam announced on Wednesday that the island was officially handed over to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) on August 4 for their use.
MIFCO's main activity in Kanduoiygiri was to operate a fish factory. The minister said efforts are underway to secure land in Hulhumale to relocate the activities previously conducted on Kanduoiygiri, noting that financial assistance has already been secured to relocate the operations to Hulhumale'. However, he did not specify when these operations would commence in Hulhumalé.
“The works were carried out in Kanduoiygiri for a long time but the fishermen were not getting the solutions they needed,” he said.
Shiyam reiterated that although Kanguoiygiri operations made fish products after purchasing fish from fishermen, the island's deteriorating infrastructure posed significant challenges for boats approaching the island. Such challenges included damaged outer revetments and insufficient harbor depth. Shiyam said that operations in Kanduoiygiri had to cease for these reasons.
