Kulhudhuffushi Industrial Zone Land Removed from City Council Jurisdiction for Port Expansion

The government has removed land, including the Kulhudhuffushi Industrial Zone, from the jurisdiction of the City Council for use under amendments to the Decentralization Act introduced by this administration. The Ministry of Finance stated that the land encompassing the industrial zone was taken out of the Council’s control because it is needed for the expansion project of Kulhudhuffushi Sea Port. The expansion project of this multi-purpose port, which handles containers and general cargo, includes extending the quay wall outward, deepening the area, deepening the harbor, and expanding the port to accommodate large vessels. Under the port expansion, the land in the Kulhudhuffushi Industrial Zone will be used as a distribution center where containers brought via Enka Services are distributed to the area, and it includes establishing free zone services, warehousing, and bonded warehousing on that land. The land currently occupied by the industrial zone includes land leased for operating STO’s North Distribution Center and land leased to Handy Holdings (Private) Limited for establishing cold storage. Anyone wishing to submit any opinion or complaint is requested to submit it in writing to the Ministry of Finance within 14 days starting from today. This government amended the Decentralization Act such that after the Cabinet decides to separate land or a place falling under a Council’s jurisdiction for implementing government projects, that place will be separated from the Council’s ownership and become land where the state exercises full authority. In situations where the government seeks land to implement a development project even before approving the Physical Development Plan of islands, that land must be handed over to the government. In opposition to these changes, the public and opposition parties had referred to the bill through which land was acquired as the "Land Grab Bill."