The Groundbreaking ceremony of the new Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) building

          Villimale, June 23, 2022 – The groundbreaking ceremony for the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre’s (MRCC) new building was completed today. The ceremony was held at the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre located in Villimale’, and was honored by the Minister of Defence Uz. Mariya Ahmed Didi, Ambassador of Japan to the Maldives, H.E. Mrs. Takeuchi Midori, UNODC Global Maritime Crime Prevention Programme Coordinator of Indian Ocean East, Ms. Pernille Rasmussen, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador at-Large, Ibrahim Saleem and other senior officers from MNDF.
 
          In February 2021, the Government of Japan committed a grant of three hundred and eighty nine million Japanese Yen (¥ 389,000, 000), (approximately USD 3.7 million which is equivalent to Maldivian Rufiyaa 57 million) to the United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime to facilitate the project to strengthen the capacities of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) of the Maldives National Defence Force Coast Guard.
 
          The 3 year project consists of two components:

1. Year 1 will be dedicated to the construction of the 4 floors of a new MRCC building including training facilities and a library. The building will be fully furnished under the project. 
2. Year 2 and 3 will be dedicated to the Search and Rescue and Maritime Law Enforcement training programmes. UNODC will design and deliver tailored training programmes not only for the Coast Guard but also for other law enforcement agencies.