President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has confirmed that dredging at Giraavarufalhu will be completed by the end of April, and housing plots in the area will be allocated from the end of June.
Dredging work at Giraavarufalhu began on 30 January.
A total of 167.15 hectares of land has been earmarked for reclamation in Giraavarufalhu. The Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) began dredging the remaining 97.15 hectares in January.
According to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report published in January, 12 hectares of land were reclaimed during Phase One of the Giraavarufalhu reclamation project. Subsequently, 18 hectares were reclaimed in Phase Two, while 26 hectares were reclaimed in Phase Three.
In a social media post, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu stated that dredging work on the project has been ongoing daily. Based on the current pace of work, he projects that dredging will be completed by the end of April. Following the completion of surveys, the allocation of land plots is expected to begin in June. To meet this timeline, two dredgers are being used.
A new land-use plan has been prepared while dredging work is underway. Following changes to the plan, a redraw was conducted among the recipients of the land. A total of 4,072 plots, in four different sizes, will be allocated.
The plot distribution is as follows: 2,605 plots of 1,250 sqft, 2,313 plots of 1,650 sqft, 253 plots of 2,050 sqft, and one plot of 2,450 sqft.
The government is also bringing in large dredgers to accelerate reclamation work in the Greater Malé area and the atolls. Dredging for Hulhumalé Phase Three has been completed, while dredging at Rasmale’ is currently underway.
The previous land-use plan lacked sufficient space for basic facilities relative to the population. Therefore, the current administration revised the plan to ensure adequate provision for essential infrastructure, including green spaces and other key facilities.