The Embassy of the Republic of Maldives in the Federal Republic of Germany commemorated the 52nd anniversary of Maldives Independence Day. The Maldives gained independence from the British on 26th of July 1965, after 77 years as a British protectorate.
On 28th of July 2017, the Embassy hosted an official Independence Day reception in Adlon Hotel for 200 guests. The event was attended by the officials of the Federal Foreign Office, distinguished diplomats from around the world, honorary consuls, partners of the travel trade, media and the Maldivian community living in Germany.
Guests at the event were served Maldivian cuisine (Gulha, Bajjiya, traditional breadfruit and Taro chips, coconut delicacies and grilled fish). The event was graced by the Maldivian community living in Germany, entertaining the guests with traditional music.
Her Excellency Ambassador Jameela Ali Khalid in her speech addressing the gathering noted the importance of having the Embassy of Maldives in Germany, as Germany represents the number one market in Europe for tourist arrivals in Maldives. She informed that in 2016, there were more than a million tourist arrivals and more than hundred thousand visitors were from Germany. She hopes that this number can be sustained.
It was heart-warming and with a sense of pride that she acknowledged the plentiful work done together by the industry partners and the Maldivian government that Maldives has scored the top destination status and has achieved many goals.
“ As we present the “ the sunny side of life” to the world, allow me to congratulate all those who have made this happen and let us pray that Maldives always remains as a Paradise on Earth”. “We welcome the German population and the rest of the world to enjoy once in their lifetime the beauty and the exquisiteness that God has blessed the Maldives”.
Over the last three years, the tourism industry in Maldives is booming and is set for large expansion projects including the expansion of the Velana International airport. There are world renowned luxury hotelier groups investing in Maldives. Currently there are 120 resorts and this number is to increase as there will be additional 20 resorts to be opened by end of 2017.
At the event the Director General of the Asia and the Pacific of the Federal Foreign Office Ms Ina Lepel also spoke. In her speech she also acknowledged the importance of tourism to the Maldives and appreciated the work done by the tourism sector to uphold the title and urged the Maldivian government to ensure that it will always remain a safe and beautiful place for everyone to visit.
The Embassy of Maldives in Berlin, Germany was opened on 28th of September 2016 by the Maldivian Foreign Minister Dr Mohamed Asim. In his speech at the event, the Foreign Minister appreciated the contribution Germany has made towards the development of the Maldives, particularly in the field of tourism. That many German nationals are employed both directly and indirectly in the tourism sector. He further added that the quality and quantity of economic and trade links between Germany and Maldives have increased. In the last 5 years alone, the investment volume of German companies in the Maldives was over 150 million euros. Over 10 million euros of goods are imported from the Maldives to Germany, mainly fish products. Over 40 million euros of goods were exported from Germany to the Maldives last year. We expect this figure to increase once again this year.
During the event the Embassy of Maldives website was launched by Ambassador Jameela Ali Khalid. Now all the interested viewers can get the latest information and news about Maldives and on various bilateral engagements related to both countries; Germany and Maldives at www.maldivesembassy.de . The website will be available in both English and in German.
Ambassador Her Excellency Ms. Jameela Ali Khalid made special mention of Jumeirah Vittaveli, who has been the event’s main sponsor and thanked them wholeheartedly for their very generous sponsorship and the raffle draw; complimentary 5 nights stay for two on a full board basis inclusive transfer from the airport. The lucky winner of the Raffles draw was H.E Dr. Badr Abdellatty, the accredited Ambassador of Arab Republic of Egypt to Germany.
