President Solih announces handover of 6,200 Plots from Binveriya scheme next month

The government plans to allocate 2,200 plots from Hulhumalé, 2,000 plots from Gulhifalhu, and 2,000 plots from the newly reclaimed land in Giraavaru lagoon.

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has announced that a total of 6,200 land plots will be allocated to beneficiaries under the government's "Binveriyaa" land ownership scheme in the upcoming round. The President further stated that the process of handing over the land to the respective beneficiaries will commence in August.

During the inauguration ceremony of the land reclamation project at Gulhifalhu, President Solih announced that the government is actively working on providing land for the residents of Malé, and that land will be allocated from Hulhumalé, Gulhifalhu, and Giraavaru Falhu for this purpose.

According to the President, the government will allocate a total of 2,200 plots of land from the existing land area of Hulhumalé, while at least 2,000 plots will be granted from Gulhifalhu and 2,000 plots will be granted from land that will be reclaimed in Giraavaru lagoon.

President Solih said that a portion of the land to be granted under the Binveriyaa Scheme is already available in Hulhumalé. He further highlighted that the government aims to meet the increase in the number of plots to be provided by reclaiming additional land through the newly inaugurated Gulhifalhu mega project.

Initially, the government had announced that 5,000 plots of land would be granted under the Binveriyaa Scheme. However, considering the high number of eligible applicants, the government has made the decision to award land to all eligible beneficiaries who have submitted forms for the current round of the BInveriyaa Scheme.

An additional 150 hectares of land will be reclaimed in Gulhifalhu. Currently, Gulhifalhu spans 68 hectares, but with the new land reclamation project, it will expand to a total area of 218 hectares.

The reclamation work for the second phase of the Gulhifalhu Project has been awarded to Boskalis, a Netherlands-based company without a prior bidding process on October 17, 2019. According to the company, the project is estimated to cost MVR 2 billion.

According to the Ministry of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, the project is financed by two European banks; ABN Amro Bank and AKA Bank.

As part of the development plans, a portion of the land reclaimed in Gulhifalhu will be utilized for the relocation of the Malé Port. A Master Plan has been formulated to guide the development and transformation of Gulhifalhu into the economic hub of the Malé region.