By Hawwa Lubna

Aishath Haseena* and her sisters, clutching empty bottles, rushed to the water tank near the mosque as soon as the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) officials finished re-filling the tank. It had been empty for over two weeks.

“Water tanks in almost all the houses are empty now. So everyone started to collect water from the public tanks. But, two weeks back, the public tanks also ran out of water,” Haseena, a resident of Hithadhoo in Addu Atoll, told Minivan News today.

Islamic Foundation of the Maldives (IFM) has donated vital food aid to over 80,000 victims of famine in the drought-stricken Somalia.

In a press statement released today, the religious NGO claimed that the food aid which included rice, flour, sugar, dates and cooking oil was handed over to 84,040 Somalis. Most recipients were women, children and the elderly.

According to IFM, food items worth Rf365, 203 (US$23,683) were equally distributed among 10,050 households belonging to the four worst hit areas: Bay, Bakool, Lower Shabelle and Banadir.

The Maldives holds South-East Asia’s record for being malaria-free. Meanwhile, the region is falling behind as one-third of affected countries show signs of eliminating the vector-borne disease over the next ten years.

Dr Robert Newman, director of the Global Malaria Program of World Health Organisation (WHO) said malaria control has improved significantly. “The world has made remarkable progress with malaria control. Better diagnostic testing and surveillance has shown that there are countries eliminating malaria in all endemic regions of the world.”

Hospitals in the capital have said they continue to screen significant numbers of patients for dengue fever, yet claim that the situation remains “stable” as authorities raise fears that an ongoing outbreak of the virus may be more persistent than originally thought.

By Neil Merrett

The task force appointed by the government to combat a dengue fever outbreak linked to the deaths of seven people has claimed it is beginning to bring the spread of the virus under control, despite initial difficulties in coordinating with local councils.

A flotilla of ships hoping to breach an Israeli naval blockade to deliver cargo they claim contains vital aid and support for Palestinian territories has begun its journey from the Mediterranean Sea this week.

The commencement of the flotilla’s journey comes just over a year after several members of a similar fleet of vessels were killed and injured after clashes with Israel’s military last year.

The President's Office has said that it will provide Japan with 1,800 cases of Maldivian tuna - amounting to 86,400 individual cans - as "emergency disaster supplies" for victims of an earthquake and tsunami that has ravaged the country and its infrastructure.

Japan was devastated Friday by an earthquake measuring 8.9 on the Richter scale and an ensuing tsunami thought to have killed thousands in the Northeastern Miyagi Prefecture alone. However, in the aftermath of the disaster, local news reports have said that the

The European Commission has pledged €6.5 million (US$9.36 million) to help the Maldives adapt to the effects of climate change and mitigate the impact, and provide technical support.

The new Climate Change Trust Fund will be administered by the World Bank in a deal cemented between President Mohamed Nasheed and World Bank President Robert Zoellick at Copenhagen.

"The European Commission has given the money to the World Bank and asked them to manage it," noted Minister for the Environment, Mohamed Aslam. "I believe the contract is already

The school was under construction for the past four years, and was rebuilt with funding from the British Red Cross.

There are 20 teachers and 260 students at the school, according the education ministry.

As in other school districts, the school has a shortage of Islam and Dhivehi teachers, and there is a low enrollment compared to past year.

The state minister of education said