Six local students studying medicine in Pakistan are returning to Maldives on Wednesday, with the support of Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The foreign ministry disclosed that the students departed from Pakistan late Tuesday, and are due to reach Maldives on Wednesday night via Doha.
The six students are among the local healthcare workers and students abroad being enlisted by the government as volunteers for the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) and its operation to curb the spread of COVID-19 in Maldives. Volunteers will be utilised by the growing number of quarantine and healthcare facilities across the country.
Earlier this month, 33 Maldivian medical students studying in Nepal also returned to the country as volunteers for the coronavirus task force.
Pakistan has reported over 990 infections and a death toll of seven from COVID-19. The country's most populous province, Punjab, is currently on a partial lockdown for a period of 14 days.
Maldives now has 13 confirmed and eight active cases of COVID-19, with five recoveries. No Maldivians have tested positive for the virus as of yet. So far, only tourists and resort employees have confirmed infections with no local transmissions.
The World Health Organization has classified the spread of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. The novel coronavirus has infected more than 423,400 and claimed over 18,900 lives around the world. Out of those infected, more than 109,100 have recovered.
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