The State of Japan has made significant contributions to the development of Maldives, says Vice President Faisal Naseem.
Vice President Naseem said this in a ceremony held at Hotel Jen in capital city Malé to mark November 29th, the day the Japanese people established the Meiji constitution.
Speaking at the event, Vice President Naseem extended greetings for this occasion to the Japanese Emperor, his royal majesty’s family, and the people of Japan.
Naseem described the relations between Japan and Maldives as one between kindred cultures, given how both countries are island nations historically dependent on the sea.
The vice president said he hopes the Maldives and Japan will continue to work together and increase the strong and multi-sectoral bilateral ties that already exist.
Diplomatic ties between Japan and the Republic of Maldives was established in 1967, two years after Maldives ended its status as a ‘protected’ state with the colonial Britain.
One of the most evident signs of Japan’s relations with the Maldives is the 6-kilometer coastal protection barrier that surrounds capital city Malé and protects it from erosion.
The barrier was built at request from former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, who was in office in 1987 when the capital was hit by storm surge that paralyzed the country’s economy and caused damage to public property costing a total of over USD 6 million.
The Japanese Official Development Alliance began development of the barrier in 1987 and it was completed in 2002. Experts believe that the capital city would have incurred far more damage and loss of lives in the 2004 Pacific-Indian Ocean tsunami if the barrier was not built.
