Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that 11 foreigners were granted Maldivian citizenship last year.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said that 11 foreigners were granted Maldivian citizenship last year.
Speaking in today's meeting of the Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Ministry's Director General Ismail Mamdhooh said that 16 persons had applied for citizenship in the last year. Out of these, 11 were granted.
These were to an individual from Eritrea, one from Palestine, three from Indian, and five from Sri Lanka.
As revealed in the meeting, 33 individuals have been granted citizenship since the Maldives Citizenship Act was ratified in 1969.
Mamdhooh said that with the Citizenship Act being from many years ago, it lacks details. However, under the act, before granting citizenship, it is checked whether they are a Sunni muslim, how well they know the Constitution and laws, basic education level, and Dhivehi literacy.
The person also must have lived for a minimum of ten consecutive years in the Maldives. As per the law, it is the President who has the authority to grant citizenship.
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