President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has urged all to care for each other this Ramadan, as the country faces the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The president made the appeal while addressing the nation on the occasion of the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan, where he extended his greetings on the occasion to the people of the Maldives and the leaders and people of other Muslim countries, on Thursday evening.

Noting that the country remains under a state of health emergency with various measures in place to control the spread of Covid-19, he stressed that “this would make this year’s Ramadan very different from those of past years”.

The president stated that “we must not resign ourselves to hopelessness” even though “the community spirit and joyful air that typically accompanies the holy month will be diminished in these difficult times” and urged all to overcome this “by practising the core values preached in the Holy Quran; kindness, charity and mercy”.

He also stated that “there is no better time to practice those values than during Ramadan, as the holy month is intended for Muslims to pray, reflect, to keep in mind those less fortunate, to contemplate [ones’] own thoughts and actions, and to see if they align with the spirit of Islam”.

President Solih also stressed the importance of “engaging in good deeds, prayers and recitation of the Quran during this month” and called upon the people to “turn to the examples of those who embody the sacred values of our faith” including the healthcare workers working day and night to care for the sick and to contain this virus; the grocers and delivery staff helping to keep each household provisioned; and the police officers and MNDF soldiers assisting those efforts, while they keep the country safe from other threats.

He further called on everyone “to help each other in the spirit of Ramadan as every act of kindness, every small mercy, every bit of patience, and every prayer, matters, and to acknowledge the service and sacrifice of those who are risking their lives to contain this crisis, by keeping them in our prayers”.