The cabinet, in a meeting today, has decided to see if the Maldives can claim for an extended continental shelf.
The decision was made after discussing about making a submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. Discussions were based on a paper jointly prepared by the Ministry of Defence and National Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the issue.
Members of the cabinet underscored the importance of having a government institution to oversee matters such as making claims over the continental shelf. They also discussed on finding funding sources for such work.
The cabinet appointed the Maldives National Defence Force as the overseeing authority for such tasks.
When continental shelf coordinates are determined, a country will have the right to exploit the minerals, natural resources, and sedentary species, in the seabed.
The Maldives had not done any work on claiming the area for its continental shelf, since it signed up to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 26 years ago.
The government, however, has this year started preliminary work on making a submission to the UN.
In today’s meeting, the Cabinet also discussed on marking the first anniversary of the new government. They decided to hold a ‘Democracy Fair’ to provide information on the government’s achievements during the first year.
