Maldives is a key partner for India in Indian Ocean region: EAM Jaishankar

Male, Aug 11 (PTI) The Maldives is a key partner for India in the Indian Ocean region and the two nations aspire to turn their cooperation into a modern partnership, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Sunday.

Jaishankar's remarks came as he along with his Maldivian counterpart Moosa Zameer attended the handing over ceremony of Addu Reclamation and Shore Protection Project and inauguration of the 4-lane Detour Link road project facilitated by the Government of India under the Line of Credit of EXIM Bank.

"The Maldives for us is a key partner in the Indian Ocean region. It is very much at the heart of our Neighbourhood First policy. And it is therefore very natural that the cooperation between our two countries has moved beyond the traditional role. And today really aspires to be a modern partnership," Jaishankar said.

"Our development cooperation is aimed at touching all facets of people's lives and finding ways of bringing tangible benefits to their lives," he said.

In the last few years, India has invested around USD 220 million which provides a fair idea of the importance that India attaches to regional development in the Maldives, he said.

"We are today among the largest trading partners among others. We're also witnessing greater investment flows from India to the Maldives, particularly in the tourism sector," he said.

India has partnered with the government of Maldives on the Addu Reclamation and Shore Protection project to find a sustainable way to develop it as a regional hub, he said.

The reclamation of 184 hectares of land was concluded earlier this year. This ambitious USD 80 million programme involves reclamation for tourism development purposes, as well as for the overall economic development of Addu.

The project will help in the overall growth of the region, bringing in better opportunities for employment, entrepreneurship and trade.

"Another important project being carried out with Indian assistance is the redevelopment of the Addu Roads and Drainage development with an outlay of USD 70 million. This project is in the last phase and once completed, will provide a solution to problems of water logging of roads in Addu," he said.

"The Addu detour link road that has been inaugurated today which is the cause for us gathering here is an important component of this project and will significantly ease connectivity within the atoll," he said.

"Under the Indian Line of Credit, we have focused not only on developing Addu's facilities as a region but also connecting it to the outside world," he said.

The Government of Maldives under the Indian LOC is also undertaking the redevelopment of the Gan International Airport, a connectivity project with an outlay of USD 29 million that will bridge the gap between Addu Atoll and the Maldives and the rest of the world.

"It will improve investor confidence and increase local tourism in Gan and southern atolls, with broader economic gains expected to materialise for many local communities," Jaishankar said.

India places an equal emphasis on impactful community development projects in the Maldives.

"We are already partnering on 65 projects of which 12 or five of these projects have already been delivered. We are happy to see the success of this high-impact Community Development Project model, expand its footprint and increase its presence on an exponential scale," he said.

Jaishankar also highlighted other projects being undertaken with India's assistance in the Maldives.

India remains open to the evolving needs and priorities of its Maldivian friends and the two governments endeavour to provide customised solutions to their requirements.

He also congratulated the government and people of Maldives in particular, the people in southern Maldives on these two projects.

"They stand as a testament to the defining key of our partnership, which is imagined by the Maldives and delivered by India. I'm confident that these projects will have a transformative impact on the economy of the region and help spur development for many generations to come," he said.

"India Maldives Friendship is people-centric," Jaishankar said in a post on X giving details of the India-assisted projects in the Maldives.

"India shares its developmental experiences with its neighbours," he added. PTI