Maldivian govt to sign contract for India-funded Greater Male Connectivity Project today

Male [Maldives], August 26 (ANI): A contract for the construction of the largest-ever infrastructure project funded by India in the Maldives will be signed on Thursday.

The contract will be inked between the archipelagic nation’s government and Maharashtra-based construction and engineering company Afcons infrastructure.

The Greater Male Connectivity Project (GMCP) will be the largest-ever infrastructure project in the Maldives, funded under the Indian Grant and Line of Credit.

Indian High Commissioner to the Maldives, Sunjay Sudhir, said that the GMCP is not only the biggest project India is doing in the Maldives but also the biggest infrastructure project in the Maldives overall.

“The Greater Male Connectivity Project is concrete proof that India is a robust development partner of the Maldives in addition to being the First Responder in times of any emergency in the Maldives. This iconic project will give a major boost to the Maldivian economy,” he said.

India and Maldives signed the GMCP agreement in 2020.

The project aims to revitalise the Maldivian economy through a $400 million Line of Credit (LOC) and $100 million grant linking its capital Male with Gulhifalhu Port and Thilafushi industrial zone along with a regular cargo ferry service between the two countries to boost trade and commerce.

This project involves the construction of a series of bridges and causeways that amount to 6.7 kilometres long connecting Male to Vilingili, the industrial zone in Thilafushi, together with the newly proposed International Port at Gulhifalhu.

This project will be an infrastructural complement to the Gulhifalhu commercial port project which is being done under an Indian LoC of USD 800 million.

Since the current Male port has already reached its maximum physical capacity, the Maldives Government has decided to shift the Male port to Gulhifalhu island. This has given rise to the need to consider the development of link bridges to the three industrial islands for seamless connectivity, as per sources. (ANI)