In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Tourism and Diving industry of the Maldives, the “Ocean 6|50” event was launched on Thursday.

The extreme diving event was launched by First Lady Fazna Ahmed during a special ceremony held at the Salt Café and Restaurant at 4pm on Thursday.

Taking the podium at the event, the first lady urged the public to make such events inclusive and stressed on the importance of allowing women, children and persons with disabilities to actively participate in such events.

As Maldives celebrates the ongoing year as the Golden Jubilee of the country’s tourism sector, the first lady emphasized on the significance of spreading awareness among the younger generations on such topics.

She also noted the importance of instilling the values of hard work, dedication and perseverance in the hearts of children.

She also urged to teach children about the Maldives’ tourism industry’s road to success.

An initiative by Unix Sporting, the Ocean 6|50 event is a one-of-a-kind dive event where Shafraz Naeeem, an ex-military dive instructor with 27 years of experience in the diving industry, will be spending an astounding 50 hours, six meters underwater.

This will be done from February 25 – 27.

During the event, a video featuring the details of Ocean 6|50 was also shown, with Shafraz Naeem answering questions by press as well.

The event aims to emphasize the importance of brining a community-based solution by raising awareness on sustainable solutions to plastic pollution, climate change and marine conservation.

The dive is the first of its kind in the South Asia region and will recognize as a significant record, if successful.

Registration for the “extraordinary” event opened on January 15 and tickets for each person starts at USD 65. The ticket includes a t-shirt, a dive of 15 – 20 minutes with Shafraz, pledge signing followed by refreshments.

The event brings together the local and international diving community, marine researchers, and environmental activists to raise awareness.