The dates gifted to Maldives by the government of Saudi Arabia has been distributed to various institutions, colleges, and religious organizations, according to the Islamic Ministry.
The Islamic Ministry website states that Saudi Arabia gifted 15 tonnes of dates to Maldives this year as well.
The dates were handed over in a ceremony held at the Islamic Centre on February 23 by the Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the Maldives Yahya Hassan Alqahtani and was accepted by Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed.
At the ceremony, Minister Shaheem expressed gratitude to King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud and the Saudi government for the close relations maintained with the Maldives.
Every year, Saudi Arabia gifts a large quantity of dates to the Maldives ahead of Ramadan.
