The Government of Japan has provided grant aid of MVR 15 million to the Maldives.

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that this grant is for the continuation of scholarship opportunities to be offered by the Government of Japan for the fiscal year 2022, under the Japanese Project for Human Resource Development (JDS).

The Minister of Higher Education Dr. Ibrahim Hassan and Resident Representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Mitsuyoshi Kawasaki signed the Agreement today at a ceremony held at the Ministry of Higher Education.

Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Higher Education, Embassy of Japan, and JICA attended the ceremony.

On 15 July 2021, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid, and the Japanese Ambassador to the Maldives Keiko Yanai signed the Exchange of Notes relating to the grant aid, at a ceremony held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The grant will be utilized to provide fully-funded scholarships for 6 Maldivian students again this year, a project which was implemented last year also by the Government of Japan for further promoting the Human Resource Development in the Maldives.

The Government of Japan has always been a consistent partner of the Maldives and has contributed to the development of the social, environmental, and education sectors in the Maldives.