12th June 2011, Male'; The Government of India has approved the list of essential commodities requested by the Government of Maldives for the year 2011, following a request sent to the Indian Government last year.
According to the communication sent to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Indian Government has approved essential food commodities, including sugar, eggs, potatoes, onions, dhal, and wheat flour. While these commodities had been approved for a period of three years, construction materials such as stone aggregate and river sand has been approved for a year.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is still waiting for the authorization of rice from the Government of India.
Additionally, the Government of Bangladesh has authorized exporting stone aggregate to the Maldives, following negotiations with the Bangladeshi Government since last year. Further to the recent visit by Minister of Foreign Affairs H. E. Mr. Ahmed Naseem, the matter was expedited by Bangladeshi authorities, and the Bangladeshi Government had requested the State Trading Organization to conduct a feasibility assessment to work out the details between the two governments.
ENDS.