OPEN LETTER
21 May 2026, Hithadhoo, Addu City, Maldives
OPEN LETTER FOR THE URGENT ATTENTION OF
The President, Dr. Mohamed Muizzu
COPIED TO:
The Ministry of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development
The Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy
Environmental Regulatory Authority (ERA)
Parliament Committee on Environment and Climate Change
UNESCO Man and Biosphere Programme
President Muizzu,
On 19 October 2025, Project ThimaaVeshi issued an open letter endorsed by 18 civil society organisations and 7 local tourism actors, outlining our serious concerns to the Minister of Tourism and Environment, Thoriq Ibrahim, about a proposed project to extend the Link Road in Moolekede Fishimathi, Hithadhoo, Addu City. PTV also wrote to you, President Muizzu, on behalf of the youth of Addu, urging you to reconsider the project while proposing alternatives in line with the hurriedly carried out EIA. The project clearly undermined the ecological integrity of the project site, an environmentally sensitive mangrove ecosystem on the fringes of the Eidhigali Kilhi and Koattey (Addu Nature Park) Protected Area.
We are aware through the EIA process that there is neither community need nor support for the destruction of the mangroves or the ecosystems they sustain. Despite the consistent evidence-based protestations by PTV, youth, and community members in Addu, the project was expedited as a high-priority development, and reclamation work was initiated with fanfare, though it has failed to be completed to date. It is our observation that this project, which offers questionable local benefit, continues to be driven by the opaque political interests of individuals affiliated with decision-makers, who are misusing public office at the expense of the community and generations to come.
On 18 May 2026, we learned that the current project parameters are now being extended by the authorities, further encroaching on the already degraded wetland ecosystem. Furthermore, we are appalled at the manner in which the project site has been extended by re-drawing the Eidhigali Kilhi and Koattey Protected Area boundaries, with no effort made to provide information to or consult the public. We strongly condemn the top-down, unilateral manner in which these decisions have been imposed, without transparency or any opportunity for public and stakeholder participation in matters that directly affect our natural heritage, climate resilience, and environment. This can also further erode both public and global trust in Protected and Conserved areas in the Maldives.
While Addu was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2020, the downsizing and rezoning of the reserve’s core protected area directly conflicts with UNESCO’s criteria and guiding principles for Biosphere Reserves. UNESCO’s Seville Strategy and Statutory Framework for Biosphere Reserves emphasise that core protected areas must be effectively buffered in order to maintain their conservation functions. However, following the rezoning, the buffer zones surrounding the core protected area are no longer clear. At the end of the day, this amendment facilitates reclamation and road development immediately adjacent to a protected area, activities which risk altering natural drainage patterns, increasing road runoff into the wetland, fragmenting habitats, and intensifying human pressures on the ecosystem. This fundamentally contradicts the stated management objectives of the core protected area, which are to preserve habitats, ecosystems, and species in as undisturbed a state as possible while maintaining essential ecological processes. These changes also set a dangerous precedent whereby protected areas can be downsized and stripped of protections at the sole discretion of the state to accommodate politically-driven development projects. Such actions could have severe and irreversible consequences, and may ultimately place Addu’s UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status at risk.
New Addu Nature Park area in orange, removed area in red (source: @iharfa on X).
The youth of Addu leading this statement cannot accept this level of disregard for the climate resilience of the atoll by the Minister of Climate Change, Environment and Energy, who until recently, held the position of Special Envoy for Climate Change, a position mandated by the Climate Emergency Act of the Maldives. Addu has already suffered major environmental degradation and losses due to the massive reclamation project across multiple islands carried out in 2023. The recently “reclaimed” land is yet to be utilised, while the remaining degraded natural buffers protecting the atoll continue to be targeted for highly questionable infrastructure activities with impunity. The justification and rationale presented for the project was flawed from the beginning, and recent developments give clear evidence for the political nature of the project. In this context, the facilitation by the Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy to cause further irreversible damage to Moolekede Fishimathi represents the continuation of acts of ecocide in Addu.
We are deeply disturbed by these developments, specifically recalling the commitment made by you, President Muizzu, on 23 December 2025 at the “Youth Coffee with President” event, following concerns regarding the above matters, that youth voices will be considered prior to decisions impacting the environment being made. As of now, you have failed to uphold your commitment to the youth of Addu, and the nation as a whole.
In light of the above, we call on you, President Muizzu, and the Ministers involved in these developments, to bring an immediate halt to the destructive activities which will cause further irreversible loss and damage to Moolekede Fishimathi. We remind you that the government’s short-term political actions today will expose the youth to preventable climate hazards both in the short term and in our uncertain future. We also remind you that the wilful exposure of communities to environmental loss and damage is unconstitutional under the laws of the Maldives.
Sincerely,
Project ThimaaVeshi (PTV)
- Veshisaafu
- Nalafehi Meedhoo
- Addu Women’s Development Initiative (AWDI)
- United Movement for Awareness and Resilience (UMAR)
- Maavahi NGO
- Save Maldives Campaign
- Save FunaVaa
- Maldives Resilient Reefs
- Maldives Coral Institute
- Maldives Local Councils Association
- BeLeaf Maldives
- Ecocare Maldives
- Transparency Maldives
- Zero Waste Maldives
- Association for Democracy in the Maldives (ADM)
- Ocean Culture Life
- Secret Paradise Maldives
- Seabots
- ASF Maldives
- Forest Blu Maldives
- Addu Travel & Tours
- Atollberry
- Discover Addu
- Soulty Freedivers
