Health Minister Ahmed Naseem says Maldivian authorities are working with World Health Organization WHO officials to conduct research on finding the reason for the rise of serious non-communicable diseases in the Maldives.

He said this while speaking at the Parliament today when the MP for Kulhudhufushi Uthuru Constituency Yasir Abdul Latheef asked about what the authorities were doing with the increase of serious illnesses like cancer and heart attacks in the Maldives.

The Health Minister said that ministry officials were working with WHO to find out the reason for the rise.

Minister Naseem said a team from WHO had visited the Maldives and has been finding out why serious illness has become common in the Maldives.

He further said that this was a serious issue and that it was important to know why so many were falling victim to these illnesses. The Minister added that he himself wanted to know the reason behind this as it is highly worrying.

This comes with the increase in sudden deaths in the Maldives, especially among young people.