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Presidential Address 2023: President Solih delivers the Presidential Address at the opening of the People's Majlis

Presidential Address 2023: President Solih delivers the ... Image 1

 

06 February 2023

The administration's most pressing obligation is to preserve the societal harmony maintained over the past four years, says the President

  • Peace, stability, and harmony can be maintained by listening, consulting, and making compromises on certain things while steadfastly holding to its fundamental beliefs and values
  • Every citizen before the state must be equal and equally deserve the same rights, privileges, and protections in the eyes of the state
  • Ensuring equitable educational opportunities across the country needs the development of necessary resources
  • The preparation of 6,000 skilled workers for the job market is underway

President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih delivered the Presidential Address at the opening of the People's Majlis for the year 2023 on Monday. President Solih delivered his address this morning during the first session of the People's Majlis.

In his address to Parliament, President Solih stated that the administration could maintain societal stability, harmony, and peace through its ability to listen, consult, and compromise on certain things while steadfastly holding to its fundamental beliefs and values. He said that the administration's most pressing obligation in the future would be to preserve the peace, stability, and harmony maintained over the past four years.

The President assured the public that every citizen before the state would be equal and that each citizen deserved the same rights, privileges, and protections in the eyes of the state. He said that the unprecedented peace and stability his administration had achieved and maintained was due to its adherence to nationalistic and Islamic fundamental values, and that the people now believe that the government, formed by the people, remains steadfast in its commitment to serve them.

The President said that the administration promised to deliver sweeping reforms, explaining that the motivation for these changes was to transform, improve, and alleviate the livelihoods of its people, bringing prosperity to all citizens without discrimination. He also emphasised investing in future generations to ensure the nation's continued success.

Continuing in this vein, the President reflected on the many initiatives undertaken by his administration to improve the quality of education. The President noted that 1,578 projects for constructing classroom buildings and 85 projects for developing multi-purpose halls are being completed as part of the infrastructure development initiatives. He continued by saying there are currently 509 ongoing education-related infrastructure development projects.

The President stated that in its efforts to improve the education sector, the administration had also addressed the numerous needs and requirements of teachers. He noted that the government had allowed all students to pursue higher secondary education at their atolls. Highlighting the government's free degree programme, in which 16,315 students had enrolled, the President said that more than 6,500 have graduated from the programme so far.

The President emphasised that 1,986 students had received higher education loans from the administration and that it had restructured the loans to lessen their burden. He added that work is being done to prepare 6,000 talented young people for employment.

President Solih also provided details of the administration's efforts to train youth for the labour market in his address. The President emphasised the widespread efforts to establish junior colleges, TVET centres, and polytechnic centres. The President added that a nation's most precious resource is its young, educated workforce.