Now China sends 1,500 tonnes of drinking water from Tibet to Maldives

Male: The Maldives government Tuesday announced that 1,500 tonnes of drinking water donated by China from the glaciers in Tibet has reached the archipelago nation amidst an acute water shortage.

The decision to provide Maldives with drinking water was reached during the official visit of China's Tibet Autonomous Region's Chairman, Yan Jinhai to the Maldives, where he met President Dr Mohamed Muizzu last November, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

The 1,500 tonnes of drinking water shipment has been brought into the country, Edition.mv, a news portal said, quoting an announcement by the Ministry.

At the time (in November), it was deliberated to donate water that is produced out of frozen water procured from glacial regions which are highly clean, clear and rich in minerals. Moreover, Tibet (Xizang in Chinese) Autonomous Region is known to produce high-cost premium brands of water, the ministry said.

This is the latest aid from China that has promised to help the Maldives on multiple fronts, especially since pro-China Mohamed Muizzu took over as the President in November 2023.

In March, Muizzu announced that Maldives would get free “non-lethal” military equipment and training from China's military under a newly inked agreement with Beijing soon after he met Major General Zhang Baoqun, Deputy Director of the Office for International Military Cooperation of China, and President of the Export-Import Bank of China, Ren Shengjun separately.

Previously, China had been exclusively known for its assistance towards urban and economic development of the Maldives.

The Maldives has 26 atolls and its 1,192 islands are mostly composed of coral reefs and sandbars, a combination that makes groundwater and freshwater extremely scarce and the problems are exacerbated due to climate change.

The country has tried between 2011 and 2015, a UN-funded ‘Increasing Climate Resilience through an Integrated Water Resources Management Programme’ but with limited success.

In December 2014, India carried out ‘Operation Neer’ during one of its worst water crises following a massive fire in the Male Water and Sewerage Company complex on December 4, 2014.

According to information from the Indian mission in Maldives, Indian aircraft flew multiple sorties (the first aircraft arrived in Male within 12 hours of the request from the Government of Maldives) delivering 375 tonnes of drinking water to the people in Male.

“Two Indian Ships INS Deepak and INS Shukanya also arrived in Male and delivered around 2,000 tonnes of water alleviating the pressure faced by the Maldivians,” it added.

The Maldives' proximity to India, barely 70 nautical miles from the island of Minicoy in Lakshadweep and 300 nautical miles from the mainland's western coast, and its location at the hub of commercial sea lanes running through the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) gives it significant strategic importance.

The Maldives Foreign Ministry has declared that the State has determined to distribute the water as aid to various islands in the event of drinking water shortage, the news portal said.