Public library opened in Kulhudhuffushi

A public library has been opened in Haa Dhaalu atoll's Kulhudhuffushi, an island located up north of Maldives.

The city council's Secretary General Adam Abdullah said the library has three main sections to encourage information seeking and learning; the area with books, two study rooms and a wellness room.

The wellness room is dedicated for online consultations for out-of-town counselors.

The library was set up on the site which was previously planned to develop a local market under the PSIP budget. However, the council later altered the plans and used the building as a flu clinic during the pandemic.

Adam pointed out that while developing a public library is also an obligation of the council under the Decentralisation Act, the council decided to spend over a million Rufiyaa on renovating the existing building into a library instead of constructing a new building.

The building will also house a museum and a mental health centre for young people which will be developed with the assistance of the Australian High Commission.

The public library, which is located near the hospital will be open five days a week from 9:00 hrs to 15:00 hrs and 16:00 hrs to 22:00 hrs. Since the island gets a lot of visitors on Saturday, the library will also remain open during the day time hours of Saturday as well, Adam said.

The library currently has 2,000 books of various types, with more books to be added in the coming days.

Kulhudhuffushi's Mayor Mohamed Athif said in a Facebook post that the library which was opened last night would add a new page of development and progress in the island.

"Tonight we opened a great treasure trove of information and knowledge. Tonight we opened a seminary to develop our human resources and build people. Tonight we lit a bright scientific beacon that will guide and illuminate our future..." Athif posted on Facebook.

There are 10,000 people currently registered to the island of Kulhudhuffushi. However, with expatriates and migrants from other islands, the resident population is expected to be between 13,000 to 15,000.