Greater Malé Connectivity Project (GMCP)

In News 

Recently, India and Maldives signed $500-million for the Greater Malé Connectivity Project (GMCP).

Background 

• Plans for this Greater Malé project date back to 2013, around the time the Chinese restarted work on the Sinamalé Bridge after a brief pause. 
  • The Chinese-made 1.39 km-long Sinamalé Bridge connects Malé with the islands of Hulhulé and Hulhumalé.
• In 2018, India expressed interest in working on this project, along with the port in Gulhifalhu.
• The GMCP is concrete proof that India is a robust development partner of the Maldives in addition to being the First Responder in times of any emergency in the Maldives
• In August 2020, India had decided to support the implementation of this project following a request from the Maldives government.

About the Project 

• It is the largest infrastructure project ever done by India in the Maldives.
  • It is also the biggest infrastructure project in the Maldives overall. This iconic project will give a major boost to the Maldivian economy
• It involves the construction of a 6.74-km-long bridge and causeway link that will connect the Maldives capital Malé with the neighbouring islands of Villingli, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi. 
• This project was funded by India in a grant of $100 million, with a line of credit of $400 million.
• The terms of the agreement call for the completion of the bridge by 2023. 

Significance and need of the project

• Malé is one of the most densely populated cities in the world as close to 40% of the entire population of the Maldives lives in Malé.
  • It is very congested and land is a major issue. 
• Transport is a major challenge for residents who have to take boats or seaplanes to distant islands. 
  • Locals take ferries or boats, It becomes even more difficult during the monsoons when the seas are rough. 

• The project would facilitate inter-island connectivity in the country.
• Connecting Malé with the three neighbouring islands would ease the process.

• It would also improve, opening up an alternative route for transport, which has been a persistent issue for the country’s people.

India – Maldives Relations

• Historical
  • India and Maldives share ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious and commercial links.
  • India was among the first to recognize the Maldives after its independence in 1965 and later established its mission at Male in 1972.
  • They officially and amicably decided their maritime boundary in 1976.

• Political Relations
  • Both nations are founding members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), the South Asian Economic Union and signatories to the South Asia Free Trade Agreement. 
  • They have consistently supported each other in multilateral areas such as the UN, the Commonwealth, the NAM, and the SAARC.
  • The Memorandums of Understanding (Mou) signed between both the countries covers areas such as hydrography, health, passenger and cargo services by sea, capacity building in customs and civil service training.

• Strategic Importance:
  • The Maldives holds strategic importance for India under the government’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy due to its location in the Indian Ocean. 
  • In the Indian Ocean, the Maldives archipelago comprising 1,200 coral islands lies next to key shipping lanes which ensure uninterrupted energy supplies to countries like China, Japan, and India.

• Both nations are working together to counter China’s presence in the Indian Ocean Region(IOR). 

• Trade and Economy
  • India and Maldives signed a trade agreement in 1981, which provides for the export of essential commodities.
    • Under the bilateral agreement, India provides essential food items like rice, wheat flour, sugar, dal, onion, potato and eggs and construction material such as sand and stone aggregates to the Maldives on favourable terms.
  • Indian and Maldives signed the $800 million Line of Credit Agreement in March 2019, for assisting the Maldives to achieve sustainable social and economic development. 
  • India has a positive Balance of Trade with the Maldives .

• Development Assistance Programme
  • India has helped the Maldives in many diverse areas to bolster the development of the Maldives e.g. Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Maldives Institute of Technical Education (now called the Maldives Polytechnic), India-Maldives Faculty of Hospitality & Tourism Studies, Technology Adoption Programme in Education Sector in the Maldives,  a port on Gulhifalhu, airport redevelopment at Hanimaadhoo, and a hospital and a cricket stadium in Hulhumale etc.

• India’s crucial help to the Maldives
  • Operation Cactus: It was an attempt by a group of Maldivians led by Abdullah Luthufi and assisted by armed mercenaries of a Tamil secessionist organization from Sri Lanka, the People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), to overthrow the government in the island republic of Maldives on 3rd November 1988. 
  • The coup failed due to the intervention of the Indian Army, whose military operations efforts were code-named Operation Cactus.
  • The Maldives urged India for help following the collapse of the island’s only water treatment plant, India helped by sending its heavy-lift transporters like C-17 Globemaster III, II-76 carrying bottled water.
  • Operation Neer was initiated by the Indian government to help the Maldives after a major fire broke out at the Male Water and Sewerage Company.

• Diaspora
  • There are 25,000 Indian nationals living in the Maldives (the second largest expatriate community).
  • The proximity of location and improvements in air connectivity in recent years has led to a very substantial increase in the number of Indians visiting the Maldives for tourism and business. India is a preferred destination for Maldivians for education, medical treatment, recreation, and business.

• Defence
  • Since 1988, defence and security have been a major area of cooperation between India and the Maldives.
  • A technical agreement on sharing ‘White Shipping Information between the Indian Navy and the Maldives National Defence Force was also signed, enabling the exchange of prior information on the movement of commercial, non-military vessels.
  •  India has adopted a very flexible and accommodating approach in meeting Maldivian requirements of defence training and equipment.
  • India provides the largest number of training opportunities for the Maldivian National Defence Force (MNDF), meeting around 70% of their defence training requirements. 
  • Ekuverin is a joint military exercise between India and Maldives.
• Pivot role in the SAGAR Initiative of India: the Maldives is key to India’s ambition to become a regional maritime security provider.
  • Anti-Piracy and Anti-Terror operations can also be carried out with Maldives’ help.

Major Concerns

• China’s “String of Pearls”: Aims to ensure the security of its sea lanes, especially the unhindered flow of critically-needed energy supplies from Africa and West Asia through the Indian Ocean.
• Former President Yameen’s Policies and China Card: Although the incumbent President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih is pro-India, the previous president Yameen’s policies hurt the Indian Prospects.
• Political Instability since 2015: It poses challenges while dealing with the changing governments.
• Increasing Radicalisation: The Maldives is also within the reach of radical outfits like Daesh (IS) and Pakistan based Madarassas, etc.

Conclusion and way forward 

• India-Maldives are perfectly placed to complement each other’s strategic interests.
• Hence, deeper Socio-Economic and Defence engagement can help both to propagate mutual interests at Global Platform.
• Both countries can cooperate on Hydrography, Health, Passenger and Cargo services by sea, Capacity building in customs and Civil service training.
• Countries complain that India doesn’t deliver on projects and they tend to make comparisons with China.
  • Delivering this project on time would help in mitigating some concerns that may exist in the Maldives.

Source: IE