Statistics shared by Police with parliament today show that over the past five year, 112 tourists have died in marine accidents.
The issue of tourists dying in marine accidents was brought up in parliament's Committee on Secondary Legislation by North Galolhu MP Mohamed Ibrahim (Kudu).
Ibrahim said that it is highly concerning that such a high number of tourists have died in such incidents over a five year period. He said that measures must be implemented through regulations to prevent such incidents.
He said that failure on the part of the Tourism Ministry to form regulations around this over the past years could be a contributing factor to the high number of incidents.
"It is a serious concern that there are such major delays. In such a sensitive issue... tourism is the only means through which foreign currency comes into the country. I am sharing this with you because this a far more important issue than can be dealt with with a circular for four to five years," Ibrahim said.
As per statistics shared by Police, the number of tourist deaths through marine incidents have increased year by year. The highest number of deaths are through drownings.
Police said that in 2024 alone, over twenty tourists died through drowning. The number reaches 68 when the past five years are considered. 42 tourists have died while out for snorkeling or diving. There is also one death reported through being hit by a vessel while snorkeling or diving, in addition to nine persons being injured in such incidents.
State Minister at Ministry of Tourism and Environment Dr Abdulla Niyaz said that the ministry is working on drafting a regulation on excursions and water sports, and a related advisory was issued last year.
Director General of the Tourism Ministry Aishath Ali said that the ministry has also made efforts to find a solution for the issue even until the regulations are in place.
"We set in place guidelines to act by even until a regulation is formed, so as to set in place protocols to be followed immediately even in the meantime until a regulation is in place," she said.
The ministry stated that, upon enactment of the regulation, service providers will be required to comply with its provisions to prevent such incidents and assume accountability.
