This year’s National Day function has been cancelled.
While the National Awards were to be given out at the National Day function, this will be rescheduled again as well.
While Maldives celebrates National Day on the 1st of Rabee ul Awwal, the third month of Hijri calendar, it falls on October 18 this year.
The President’s Office said that President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih decided not to hold the annual National Day functions “due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic”.
Hence, the 2020 National Awards would be presented to recipients at a special function at a later date, with the Office saying that the date will be contingent on the country’s developing Covid-19 situation.
This year’s Independence Day celebrations were also cancelled to reduce state expenditure, as part of the government’s ongoing recovery efforts from the economic repercussions of the pandemic.
While the National Awards are given out during the Independence Day function, it was decided that the awards will be given out at the National Day function.
