National-scale celebrations of National Day in Utheemu

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has announced that national-scale celebrations of the Maldives National Day will be held in Haa Alifu Utheemu for two consecutive years; 2025 and 2026.

The president made the remarks during his trip to Utheemu on Tuesday as part of his ongoing tour of the northern atolls.

Previously, such large-scale celebrations of the National Day are held once in every five-year term at Utheemu. President Muizzu revealed he intended to embolden the celebratory activities to an initiative-scale during his regime.

“As such, unprecedented concentration on the efforts, whether it is by provision of budgetary concessions, we intend to hold national-scale celebrations two years in a row,” Muizzu said.

One of the key policies of Muizzu is fostering nationalistic values among Maldivian citizens and preserving these values for future generations, and identified the importance of Utheemu in realizing this policy. He further said the island was not viewed with such importance during previous administrations.

“I would like to be clear about the pivotal role this island will play in our developmental journey,” the president added.

The Maldives national hero, Mohamed Thakurufaanu, who rid the country from Portuguese colonizers, hails from Utheemu. His home in Utheemu has been dubbed as ‘Utheemu Ganduvaru’ (Palace of Utheemu) and preserved as a cultural heritage.

Despite the palace’s cultural significance, Muizzu criticized previous administrations had failed to provide sufficient care for this site. The president assured enhanced efforts in maintaining and preserving the palace under his administration, unlike before.

Besides this, President Muizzu assured prioritizing the various infrastructural development initiatives planned for the island.