News Desk
MALE’ — Youth, Sports and Fitness Minister Abdullah Raafiu met with Indian Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on the sidelines of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, to discuss deepening bilateral cooperation in sports and youth development.
The two ministers talked about youth exchange programmes between the two countries, expanding opportunities for skills development, and securing Indian assistance for sports infrastructure projects in the Maldives. Both sides agreed to continue working together in these areas.
The meeting comes shortly after India and the Maldives signed an agreement on 19 July under India’s High Impact Community Development Projects grant programme to supply fitness and recreation equipment to 42 islands across the Maldives. The grant, worth MVR 355 million, is aimed at improving access to sports and exercise facilities for youth and women in the atolls.
Raafiu thanked the Indian minister for India’s continued support for sports development in the Maldives, which has included infrastructure assistance across various islands through successive grant programmes.
Sports cooperation between the Maldives and India is not a new agenda. Discussions on joint development of sports infrastructure and youth programmes predate the current administration, with similar commitments made during the tenure of former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. The conversations have been consistent. The outcomes on the ground have been less so. Despite years of bilateral agreements, signed memoranda and ministerial meetings, the tangible transformation of sports facilities across the Maldives has moved at a pace that leaves something to be desired.
