Every year during the 'Iruvai' monsoon, several islands of the Maldives are in need of assistance due to unavailability of drinking water due to drought. This year until now, 48 islands have sought aid from the government to obtain drinking water.
Environment Ministry said 48 islands from 15 atolls have requested for assistance in procuring drinking water. The ministry added that they have been assisting those islands and 15,000 tons of drinking water have been provided to 30 islands out of the 48 islands that requested for assistance. Work is ongoing to provide water for the rest of the islands as well, said the ministry.
Over the past 8 years, many Maldivian islands have faced difficulty in obtaining drinking water in towards the end of April, which falls on the dry season. Since 2 January 2017, the President’s Office has taken the responsibility for the task of supplying drinking water for such islands. The work was previously managed by the National Disaster Management Centre.
Environment Minister, Dr Hussain Rasheed
