Maldives and China have signed a letter of Exchange on the final design phase of the China Maldives Friendship Hospital, a 112-bed facility to be funded through a Chinese government grant aide.

The Letter of Exchange was signed on Wednesday at a ceremony held at  Dharumavantha Hospital, by Minister of Construction Housing and Infrastructure Dr Abdulla Muththalib, while Chinese Ambassador to Maldives Kong Xianhua, represented China.

The event was also attended by Minister of Health Abdulla Nazim Ibrahim as well as some high-level officials from the Chinese Embassy.

Feasibility studies on the hospital to be developed in Vilimale’, the 5th ward of Male City developed on the island close-by, have now been completed and Wednesday’s event marked the initiation of the detailed design phase.

The hospital project is one of the many development ventures supported by the government of China, which is expected to further strengthen the ties between China and Maldives, through the project. With the completion of the large hospital, which would be equipped with cutting-edge medical facilities, the people, especially those residing in  Vilimale’, will have easy access to world standard health service.

The project is also expected to complement the country’s health sector creating hundreds of employment opportunities. The space issue faced by the hospitals in Male region will also be very much alleviated with the completion of the new Hospital in Vilimale’.