Nasheed: Development of Addu will result in nation-wide progress

Prioritizing the development of the southern city of Addu will result in the development of the entire Maldives, states MDP leader and Parliament speaker, former president Mohamed Nasheed.

Nasheed met with MDP supporters in Addu during his current tour of the city on Friday night.

Responding to questions from the meeting’s participants, Nasheed said that prioritizing the development of Maldives’ islands without taking into consideration the size of islands, will result in difficulties for the entire country.

“I, myself believe we need to give greater priority to affairs of Addu. This is a population of 32,000 people. Other islands have some 80 people. What are we to do if we don’t distinguish between these two islands?” he said.

Nasheed said that while the government needed to fulfil the needs of islands with smaller populations, they also needed to consider what’s best for Maldives in terms of bringing development.

He called for greater priority to development of Maldives, citing that it was the best way to affect change in the country.

Nasheed said he accepted that it couldn’t be done instantly.

He described Addu as a city that had all the criteria to lead the race in development.

“If we were to solely focus over developmental efforts in Addu for two to three years, I’m sure it will result in development of Kondey. I’m naming a small island as an example. And the earnings of islands with small populations like Rakeedhoo will quadruple,” he said.

Nasheed said the people of Addu had the capacity to help people across Maldives, and that it required the development of the city.

He said that as Addu is developed and the income of the people of Addu increases, the entire Maldives will progress.