Minister: Hithadhoo-Kunahandhoo causeway isn’t progressing at desired speed, but will be done by mid-2028

Dr. Abdulla Muthalib, the Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development, acknowledged at Parliament on Monday that the project to develop a causeway between Hithadhoo and Kunahandhoo in L. Atoll isn’t progressing at “the desired speed”, but said that the ministry was working on completing the project and having the causeway open for public use by the middle of 2028.

Muthalib, who was summoned to the Parliament to answer questions on Monday morning, was asked by Maavah MP Ahmed Shakir, a lawmaker from the main opposition Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), regarding the progress on the Hithadhoo-Kunahandhoo causeway project.

Responding to the question, Muthalib said that the causeway project was awarded to the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) on January 22, 2023. He said that reports show the company mobilized equipment for the project in September 2023, and initiated survey and borehole investigation work.

This was during the MDP administration.

He said that the work wasn’t carried out properly, and that it was the incumbent administration that initiated practical works on the project on October 20, 2025, after completing geotechnical investigations and survey work, making necessary changes to the design, and approving detailed designs.

Muthalib noted that the MTCC was contracted to complete the MVR 80 million project within 500 days.

The scope of the project includes building a 390-meter revetment, a 157.5-meter-long bridge, and a 714-meter-long road.

He said that workers were currently engaged in mass production of the L-blocks needed for the bridge.

“However, I acknowledge, as honorable members have also said, that the project isn’t progressing at the speed we desire. But we are working to complete the project and have the road open for public use by the middle of 2028,” he said.

Muthalib said that the incumbent administration inherited signed projects worth around MVR 40 billion when it took office 2023. He said that though the administration assumed office with its own manifesto and the promise of running its own projects, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu decided to complete the signed projects, while pushing the administration’s own agenda.

He said that getting it all done requires careful consideration, and that issues and delays are possible.