Hoarafushi Council has decided to provide a bag of rice and sugar to each island household as a gift for the upcoming fasting month of Ramadan.

Council President Mohamed Waheed said that all the members voted for the motion and that they will use the money they received as aid for the initiative.

Highlighting that this was the first time that the council has decided to give out gifts to the residents, Waheed said that the staple food will be distributed within three days.

He said that while there are 700 registered houses, currently only 400 have people living in them and so around MVR 200,000 will be spent on this initiative.

Other island councils have also given benefits to their residents for Ramadan, including providing free electricity.