KUALA LUMPUR, 13 SEPT – Malaysia has been and will remain one of the important bilateral partners for the Indian Ocean island of the Maldives.
Maldivian High Commissioner Ali Hussain Didi said Malaysia had made many significant contributions to the development of his country, ever since establishing diplomatic ties in 1968.
He recalled how in 1994 and 2012, an agreement on air services and legal co-operation activities were signed.
“Malaysia is one of main import partners for the Maldives and many Maldivian students have studied in Malaysia. One of Malaysia’s Airline carriers, AirAsia had operated scheduled flights to Maldives.
“Beside that, Maldives also participated at the World Islamic Tourism Mart in Malaysia to improve their tourism industry,” Ali said at the Maldives 59th Independence Day at the JW Marriott Hotel in Jalan Bukit Bintang.
Present were guest-of-honour Malaysian Deputy Defence Minister Adly Zahari and Maldives defence adviser Brigadier-General Abdul Rauf.
Other milestones achieved were when the Maldives co-sponsored and participated jointly with Malaysia in the establishment of the International Islamic University in Malaysia in 1983.
In 1984, the two countries signed an Agreement on Economic and Technical Cooperation.
“Malaysia has been an important developmental partner for the Maldives who has made very significant contributions to the Maldives national developmental efforts, especially in the human resources development.
“Maldivian students pursuing higher education in diverse fields in various Malaysian institutes have increased considerably in recent years.
“Similarly, with the emergence of Malaysia as a strong and vibrant economy, more and more Maldivian entrepreneurs are visiting Malaysia seeking business ventures.
“Maldives and Malaysia have always enjoyed excellent relations that have strengthened over the years through ties of Islamic religion and shared cultural values.
“The two governments have been cooperating on issues of mutual concern both at the bilateral level and at multilateral fora.
“The establishment of a resident diplomatic mission in Kuala Lumpur reflects the growing importance the Maldives attaches to further enhancing its relations with Malaysia,” said Ali.
Last year, Malaysia’s total trade with the Maldives amounted to US$227 million (RM1.01 billion), an increase of 100.2 per cent from RM504 million in 2021.
At the reception, the National Symphony Orchestra of Malaysia lived up the celebrations that included cultural music and art performances by artistes from Istana Budaya. Maldivian students in Malaysia also presented a special boduberu item and a special performance ‘Minivan Vayaa’, a theatrical dance form re-enacting events leading to the Independence of the Maldives.
The celebration was concluded with live music by Maldivian music band Alignup and Dams of Harmonia of Malaysia. – airtimes.my
