Ooredoo today donated three sea ambulances to Ministry of Health in the Maldives at a special ceremony held at Izzuddheen Jetty Area. The donation comes following Ooredoo’s earlier commitment to support the Government of the Maldives work to provide quality healthcare to its citizens.
The donation aims to support the nation’s existing sea ambulance fleet, which operates from across the country and plays a vital role in delivering health care to people living throughout the highly dispersed islands.
The event was attended by Chairman of Ooredoo Group, HE Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohammed Al Thani; Minister of Health, Hon Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim; Minister of Economic Development, Hon. Mohamed Saeed; Minister of State for Defence and National Security, Mr. Mohamed Zuhair, Vice Chief of Defence Force, Brigadier General Ahmed Shahid; Deputy CEO of Ooredoo Group, Waleed Mohamed Al-Sayed; Chairman of Ooredoo Maldives and Ooredoo Group Chief Officer Small and Medium Business Unit, Khalid Al Mahmoud; and a number of key stakeholders from the government of Maldives, Ooredoo Group and Ooredoo Maldives.
Minister of Health, Hon Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim said: “Maldives being a small island nation with a unique geographical topography is home to a highly dispersed population, resulting in significant challenges in the provision of health care services to the facilities inclusive to all islands.
The country has made significant progress in its health status and development indicators over the last decades. One of the key focuses of the current government is to provide access to quality health services in an affordable, equitable and accessible manner.
Government of Maldives introduced Sea Ambulances in 2015 to ease the transportation of patients across the country. Ooredoo has been exceptional in its support for the people in the Maldives and we appreciate their initiative in recognizing the significance of the issue and adding state of the arts vessels to our Sea Ambulance Fleet.
Chairman of Ooredoo Group, HE Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohammed Al Thani said: “We are delighted to add three sea ambulances to the nation’s emergency response fleet over water. Today we have handed over two of these sea ambulances, with the third to follow before the end of the year. Improving access to basic healthcare for communities is something we are passionate about and it is our sincere hope that our donation can help bring ease to communities who require urgent healthcare, and medical attention, outside of their home islands. We look forward to taking this partnership further by introducing our global Mobile Health Clinics program in the Maldives, with the support of Ministry of Health, Maldives National Defense Force and Maldivian Red Crescent. Across our markets, mobile health clinics are making a difference in delivering healthcare to those who need it the most, and we hope to achieve the same results here in the Maldives.”
A global initiative undertaken by the company, Ooredoo Mobile Health Clinics travel to rural and remote communities to provide free medical treatment, share nutritional advice and distribute vitamins. The program aims to play an educational role, teaching parents and children about the importance of a healthy lifestyle and of disease prevention. Along with its partners, Ooredoo aims to expand this program to smaller islands in the Maldives, which can truly benefit from the program.
Chief Executive Officer of Ooredoo Maldives, Najib Khan said: “Ooredoo Maldives made a strong commitment to support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, whereby the achievement of Goal 3: Good health and Well-being is one of our key focus areas. Our investment in the Sea Ambulances, as well as the Mobile Health Clinics program is a key part of this commitment, and we hope that both these initiatives can make a positive impact in the life of our customers and the people of Maldives.”
The donated Sea Ambulances are 40 foot long with two patient beds, and can hold up to 12 passengers at a time. The vessels are also installed with a state of the art navigation and communication systems.
They are fully equipped with two oxygen cylinders along with other items of essential safety equipment.
As a community focused company, Ooredoo Maldives will continue to work together with local stakeholders to enrich the digital lives of its customers and facilitate new and exciting opportunities for social and economic development in the Maldives.
