Former Deputy Mayor of Male’ City, Shamau Shareef has been appointed as the new Chairman of the National Drug Agency’s (NDA’s) board.

With Shamau being appointed as the new Chairman, the position of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) still remains vacant. Mohamed Habeeb was the most recent CEO of NDA and was dismissed on the 16th of May.

While concerns over the level of services at the drug agency has been increasing, the government chose to rectify the situation by changing up the NDA board; five of the 10 members were replaced.

The agency's operations were also shifted under the Health Ministry in May. Shamau was recently appointed a deputy health minister, on May 24.

The NDA was established by the president under the Article 26 (a) of the Maldives Drugs Act.

The current government’s manifesto includes establishing an independent institution where victims of drug abuse can receive the professional help they need. The incumbent administrations manifesto plans to close of all doors that lead Maldivian citizens to substances abuse, and to neutralize any external influence being exerted to prevent relevant authorities from fulfilling their duties in a professional manner.