News Desk
MALE’ — The Health Ministry has confirmed that dialysis services have been introduced in 11 islands for the first time since President Dr Mohamed Muizzu took office, as the government works to bring essential medical care closer to patients across the archipelago.
Before the current administration, dialysis was only available at regional hospitals and government facilities in the Male’ area, forcing kidney patients from outer islands to travel to the capital for treatment, often at considerable personal and financial cost. The expansion aims to change that.
The government has now set a target of establishing dialysis services in a further nine islands before the end of 2026. The Health Ministry said work is progressing on track to meet that goal within the year.
Reducing dependence on Male’ for healthcare is one of the President’s stated priorities. The expansion of dialysis is part of a broader effort to upgrade health centres and hospitals across the atolls, including training staff to deliver specialist services that were previously only available in the capital.
Alongside dialysis, the government is working to establish medical laboratories in health centres across all inhabited islands so that basic diagnostic tests can be conducted locally without patients needing to travel. The Health Ministry said laboratory services will be introduced in 76 islands this year.
The number of people requiring kidney treatment has been rising in the Maldives, making the expansion of dialysis capacity outside Male’ a matter of growing urgency for island communities that have long had to navigate significant hardship to access the care they need.
