Maldives and Malaysia deepen ties with new agreements in sports, health, tourism, and diplomacy. The agreements aim to boost cooperation, capacity building, and regional collaboration across key sectors.
The President's Office
During his first official visit to the neighboring country Malaysia on 28 April 2025, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu witnessed the exchange of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs), and Exchanges of Notes (EoNs) between the Government of the Maldives and the Malaysian government.
The MoU on cooperation in sports was signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives, Dr Abdulla Khaleel, and the Minister of Youth and Sports of Malaysia, Puan Hannah Yeoh. The MoU aims to strengthen cooperation between sports organisations, promote the exchange of sporting events, support the development of sports facilities, enhance the training of athletes and officials, and encourage collaboration in anti-doping, sports medicine, and rehabilitation.
The ceremony also saw the signing of an MoU on cooperation in the field of health. This MoU aims to enhance the collaboration in human resource development, the advancement of health service delivery systems, the promotion of health tourism, and the development of health information technology. This MoU was signed by Minister Dr Abdulla Khaleel on behalf of the Maldives and Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad, Minister of Health of Malaysia.
Additionally, Dr Mariyam Shabeena Ahmed, High Commissioner of the Republic of Maldives in Malaysia, and Tuan Khairul Firdaus Akbar Khan, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia, signed the MoU on cooperation in the field of tourism. This MoU aims to promote and market tourism, foster the development of Muslim-friendly tourism, support community-based and eco-tourism initiatives, and develop cultural resources as tourist attractions.
The ceremony also included the signing of EoNs between Malaysia and the Maldives. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Maldives and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia signed EoNs on cooperation between the ministries to facilitate collaboration between the Foreign Service Institute of the Maldives and Malaysia’s Institute of Diplomacy and Foreign Relations. The EoNs were signed by Dr Mariyam Shabeena Ahmed and Mohamed Alamin, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia.
An additional EoNs on the Establishment of Bilateral Consultation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Maldives was also exchanged by Dr Mariyam Shabeena Ahmed and Mohamed Alamin. This EoNs was signed to establish regular consultations to strengthen bilateral relations, enhance cooperation in political, economic, social, and other fields of mutual interest, and coordinate on regional and international issues within the framework of the United Nations and other international organisations.
