President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and First Lady Fazna Ahmed have departed on a four-day unofficial visit to Sri Lanka.

They departed to Sri Lanka for the Eid holidays on Wednesday and is scheduled to return on Saturday.

President Solih’s last visit to Sri Lanka was in February, on the invitation of Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, to attend Sri Lanka’s Independence Day celebration as a guest of honour.

On Tuesday night, President Solih observed the friendly volleyball match played between the national teams of Sri Lanka and the Maldives at the Social Centre. The Sri Lankan team won the match with a score of 3 - 1.

The Sri Lankan National Volleyball team is visiting the Maldives at the invitation of the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Community Empowerment. The friendly match was played in preparation for the upcoming Central Zone Competition, due to be held in Nepal.

The President also presented a special Award of Appreciation from the Maldives Volleyball Association to Ahmed Abdul Kareem, a former member of the Maldives National Volleyball Team. The 'Shield' was awarded to Mr Kareem to commemorate his countless contributions to the sport, and the President also signed Kareem's jersey from the recent Indian Ocean Island Games.