Reclamation work has begun for the development of an airport in HA. Hoarafushi.

Speaking to RaajjeMV, Hoarafushi Council Vice President Ibrahim Shakeel said reclamation began on Tuesday and will take around two months to complete.

Hoarafushi residents came out to welcome and hold a feast for the workers who arrived with MTCC’s trailing suction hopper dredger, Mahaa Jarraafu.

After inaugurating the airport development project on March 31, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih said that the government will expand the local tourism industry by developing the airport and the Uligamu City Hotel.

The Transport Ministry and MTCC signed the project agreement on March 25.

MTCC Managing Director Hassan Shah told RaajjeMV that they will complete the land reclamation, runway, and terminal within 240 days.

The previous administration had initially planned for the airport to be built in Maafinolhu.

The Hoarafushi airport is expected to allow for easier travel to the northern most parts of Maldives, including to Ihavandhoo, Thuraakunu, and Uligamu.