Supporting climate change adaptation in Maldives

Rising sea levels present a huge and immediate risk for many communities all over the world. Some are fighting a losing battle.

The Maldives, a country made up of over 1,000 low-lying islands, are facing a devastating reality as their nation is sinking and could be completely gone.

According to The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), by 2100, sea levels can potentially rise up to 100 centimeters, which will be covering the majority of the entire nation.

This is a reality that is occurring right now, and if nothing is done about it, there can be devastating consequences.

There are a number of other factors relating to sea level rise that threaten the long-term survival of the country:

• Tourism represents about a third of the country’s GDP, and 45% of tourism resorts experienced severe beach erosion in 2006;
• The fresh water resources of the Maldives are also threatened by rising sea levels. Many of the country’s islands have pockets of underground fresh water; as sea water levels rise, these pockets are contaminated;
• Finally, the country’s islands are protected by coral reefs. As ocean temperatures rise, the coral reefs themselves can begin to die off. These reefs protect the islands, and are core to the country’s tourism and fishery industries.

The Maldivian government is constantly working on priority projects to address climate change issues. Some of these include:

• Integration of future climate change scenarios in the safer island strategy to adapt sea level rise and extreme weather risks associated with climate change;
• Coastal protection of safer islands to reduce the risk from sea induced flooding and predicted sea level rise.

Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) was incorporated in 1980 and is currently the longest serving public company in the Maldives.

The company was established with the objective to contribute towards the development of infrastructure and transport service in the country.

Since then, MTCC has positioned itself as one of the strongest business entities in the country with a diversified range of products and services, with a work force of over 1090 employees across the country.

This year, MTCC celebrates forty years of service to the nation.

“We have evolved with the needs of the country. In construction and infrastructure development we have expanded beyond harbour development to include airports, roads, modern construction projects and major dredging and reclamation works. We serve the marine sector ensuring that the country’s transport and fisheries sectors have access to engines, equipment and the services to support their requirements,” MTCC said in their latest Annual Report.

Today, they own the largest dredging fleet in the country and have attained a position to offer customers, cutting-edge solutions to meet their requirements.

“Our dredging fleet, which includes Mahaa Jarraafu, the 3.700 cubic meter hopper dredger has revolutionized the dredging industry in the Maldives and established us as one of the largest dredging companies in the region.”

“Our Dredging and Reclamation Segment performed well with improved revenue and earnings compared to the previous year,” said MTCC CEO, Adam Azim, in the Report.

“We worked on several significant dredging and reclamation projects during the year, notably K. Huraa, K. Maafushi, K. Guraidhoo and Centara Resort island reclamation project.”

“We recorded a growth of 159% in operating profitability compared to the previous year. We are exploring further possible avenues to expand the segment through capacity development and greater technological innovations.”

There is much to be done. There still needs to be greater cohesion among teams at various levels, said CEO.

The process of decision making has to be more data-driven, so that time is not wasted on the process of making everyday decisions, that have to be made in the course of regular operations.

Dredging has huge potential for expansion even at a regional level, according to CEO.

Major changes were brought about to the functions of the key operational departments and divisions.

In broad terms, the functions of the Company as a whole, had to be more centralized, with specialized tasks and responsibilities assigned to each department and division, thus enabling greater accountability through implementation of measurable performance targets for each.

“With our strategic location in the Indian Ocean, the development of an international dockyard, that can cater to the requirements of the fleets in the country as well as ships in the region, has the potential to transform our business. In trading, there is huge scope for expansion with new trading infrastructure, online trading platforms and further expansion of our product portfolio,” concluded Azim.