MALDIVES: Gulhifalhu Beach Cleanup

The Deputy Head of Delegation of the European Union (EU) to the Maldives and Sri Lanka, Mr Lars Bredal, participated in a beach clean-up event organised by the ‘Prevention of Marine Litter in the Lakshadweep Sea’ (PROMISE) project in the Maldives on 28th November 2022. 

Speaking at the beach clean-up, the Deputy Head of Delegation stated, “Around 80% of marine litter is plastic and if we don’t change our behaviour by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. Waste that ends up in the seas impacts marine ecosystems and threatens health and livelihood of local population. The Maldives and the European Union are close partners in the fight against climate change and in protecting biodiversity and our oceans. We work together globally for ambitious targets and we work together locally, I am pleased to join forces with everyone here today, through the EU-funded SWITCH-Asia flagship project PROMISE, where we unite to protect the marine environment for the local community and future generations.”

PROMISE is a four-year project (2020-2024) funded by the EU under the SWITCH-Asia Programme. It aims to collect up to 1000 tonnes of litter from the Lakshadweep shorelines of the Maldives, Sri Lanka and India. This is one of the many beach clean-up events scheduled for the target countries under the project to create awareness of marine litter prevention. 

A stretch of the Gulhifalhu beach area, a reclaimed island for the new commercial port, was selected as the clean-up site. The Deputy Head of the Delegation of the EU together with the Maldives Government Officials, local volunteers, and members from the relevant NGOs participated in the clean-up. The beach clean-up was jointly organised by the PROMISE project partners, the Maldives National University, and Parley Maldives as part of the ongoing project activities.