The Maldives Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid and Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs of the Sultanate of Oman, Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdallah have discussed the impacts of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

The ministry revealed that both leaders held a telephone conversation on Thursday morning, where updates regarding the ongoing pandemic’s impacts on their respective countries, were exchanged.

The Maldives minister spoke regarding the restrictive measures the government has put in place, and briefed his Omani counterpart on the measures that have been lifted to resume economic activities, under the “new normal”.

As such, FM Shahid shed light on the long-lasting impacts of the pandemic on the economic growth of the Maldives and highlighted President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s plans for resilience building, economic recovery and social services.

The Maldives minister applauded the government of Oman for their “proactive efforts” in addressing the Covid-19 impacts and successfully monitoring and curbing the spread of the virus through “innovative technologies”.

Both ministers reaffirmed commitment to further enhance the bond between both countries, through bilateral exchanges as well as collaboration in the multilateral fora on issues of mutual concern,

Highlighting that Oman Air is set to resume flights to the Maldives after July 17, the Omani minister touched on the importance of building people-to-people contact and business-to-business interactions to ensure the sustenance and recovery of the economy.

Maldives is set to reopen its borders for tourists on July 15.