The government has been arranging delivery of essential supplies sent by family members of Maldivians abroad due to challenges faced by Maldivian nationals in obtaining certain essential food items amid stringent measures taken in the countries to curb COVID-19. Most of the care packages sent to families who are residing in Sri Lanka and India have now been handed over to the recipients, the Maldives government on Wednesday said.
The Foreign Ministry said 560 packages out of the 622 packages sent to the families in Sri Lanka have been handed over to the respective people, and the remaining packages were sent to families who have been repatriated to the Maldives after the packages were sent by the cargo, and families whom the high commission has been unable to contact despite several attempts.
Neighboring Sri Lanka has placed security checkpoints in various areas as a measure to combat COVID-19. The vehicles that deliver care packages are being checked at each of those checkpoints. Thus, it is a challenging task to provide such a service in a city where a lockdown is placed, the government said.
Out of the 79 packages sent to families in India, by Wednesday, only 2 packages remain undelivered. Since India’s Kerala state is under lockdown, the packages sent to families living in Trivandrum were delivered to the respective families after obtaining a special permit from the government of India. The 65 packages sent to families residing in Cochin were delivered by the consular office in Trivandrum with a special permit to transport the packages from Trivandrum to Cochin.
Out of 452 packages sent to the families residing in Malaysia, 250 packages have been delivered to the families. The delivery of the remaining 202 packages is ongoing.
Care packages sent to families in Sri Lanka
