Parliament approves audit of uninhabited islands under Fisheries Ministry jurisdiction
Madaveli constituency MP Hussain Firushan had addressed concerns to the Economic Affairs committee
The decision was made at Wednesday's sitting of parliament
The People's Majlis has approved an audit of uninhabited islands under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture.
The audit was approved during Wednesday's sitting of parliament, after a letter sent by MP for the Madaveli constituency Hussain Firushan was analyzed by the Parliament Committee on Economic Affairs. The vote taken to approve the audit had ended with all MPs in attendance voting in favor of having the audit proceed.
The letter written by MP Firushan had highlighted the many concerns of citizens left challenged from an income and employment perspective following the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and expressed potential solutions to address said concerns. Following analysis of the letter, the Parliament Committee on Economic Affairs had recommended a contract audit of the uninhabited islands reserved for agriculture, and other uninhabited islands under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Fisheries.
The committee also issued recommendations that the Fisheries Ministry perform their due diligence for losses incurred after uninhabited islands were leased to private parties, and to follow legal procedures in the leasing of islands. The committee also noted losses incurred by investors after B. Maaddoo had been opened for leasing and closed after, and recommended that the Ministry of Fisheries structure their operations to prevent such losses in the future.
In compiling this report, the Parliament Committee on Economic Affairs had hosted meetings with the Fisheries Ministry, the Economic Ministry. the Planning Ministry, the Local Government Authority, AgroNat Corporation in addition to some island councils.
