WAMCO Prepared to Launch Waste Management Centres Across 34 Maldivian Islands

The Waste Management Corporation (WAMCO) has finalized preparations to begin constructing waste management centres across 34 islands, marking a significant step in the Maldives' nationwide effort to resolve chronic waste challenges. General Manager Ismail Ubaid confirmed to PSM News that the company has already mobilized resources on 90 percent of the assigned islands. These projects are now positioned to commence work immediately, providing critical infrastructure to communities currently lacking formal waste disposal facilities. While the majority of sites are ready, Ubaid noted that work on the remaining islands has been delayed. The bottleneck stems from a lack of designated locations within the local land use plans, meaning specific sites for the centres have not yet been officially allocated by the respective island authorities. “At present, mobilisation has been completed on 90 per cent of the islands, and the projects are at the stage of commencing work,” Ubaid stated. He emphasized that progress is steady across the majority of the project's scope, pending the resolution of land use issues on the few remaining islands. This initiative is part of a larger government strategy led by the Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy. The ministry has set an ambitious target to establish waste management centres on 129 islands by the end of July next year. To achieve this goal, the government has distributed the workload among several state-owned enterprises and private firms. While WAMCO handles 34 islands, the remaining 110 islands have been split between the Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC), Fenaka Corporation, and the Regional Development Company (RDC). An additional 19 islands are being managed by private contractors. The expansion of these centres is vital for the Maldives, as the archipelago struggles with the environmental impact of improper waste disposal. By decentralizing waste management and providing localized centres, the government aims to reduce the volume of waste reaching the main landfill at Thilafushi and improve the overall sanitation and ecological health of the outlying atolls.