Pet care facility 'Olhu Hiyaa' opens in Hulhumale’

 ‘Olhu Hiyaa’, a pet care facility developed by the government, opened on Saturday in the Farukolhufushi area of Hulhumale’ Phase II.

The facility was inaugurated by President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu in a ceremony held on Saturday afternoon. The ceremony was also attended by Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef, Animal Welfare Minister Dr. Aisthath Rameela, and Male’ City Mayor Adam Azim.

Addressing the ceremony, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu said that the Male’ City Council was allocated land to develop the pet care facility during the mayorship of his predecessor Shifa Mohamed. He said that the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) administration blocked the project when he served as mayor between 2021 and 2023. He said that the Male’ City Council struggled for around a year before it was finally allocated land for the project.

“I did not get the necessary cooperation from within the government. They refused to,” he said.

He noted that he made resolving the issue of the large stray cat population in the Maldives one of his electoral pledges during his 2023 presidential campaign.

President Muizzu said that upon winning the elections, he created a government ministry dedicated to animal welfare and included the development of a pet care facility a component of his ‘Hafuthaa 14’ agenda – the goals for his first 14 weeks in office.

“Based on my past experience, I wanted my administration to take the initiative and get the things done through the council – the things that couldn’t be done because the former administration failed to take the initiative,” he said.

President Muizzu toured the facility after the inauguration.

The pet care facility was developed under an agreement between the Male’ City Council and the Animal Welfare Ministry. Construction work began on March 19.

Built on a 5,000 square feet plot in Farukolhufushi, it seeks to resolve the issue of the growing stray cat population in greater Male’ area.

Mayor Azim previously said there are some 3,000 stray cats in the capital.

The growing stray cat population has given rise to public health concerns, as excrement litter the streets, especially in areas with a large number of cats, such as near the King Salman Mosque in Henveiru.