Chinese Government donates a sea ambulance to Maldives National Defence Force

Project narrative

In 2014, during Xi Jinping's state visit to the Maldives, he pledged that the Chinese Government would donate a sea ambulance to Maldives. Then, in 2015, during the visit of President of Maldives Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom to China, the Maldives and China formally agreed to gift a sea ambulance to the Maldives. The sea ambulance was handed over to the Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) on July 12, 2018. Additionally, Chinese Ambassador to Maldives Zhang Lizhong pledged that China would provide the required technical assistance for the boat. A Chinese expert team trained the Maldivians in ambulance driving and use of the medical equipment. Training was completed by October 30, 2018. According to the Edition, the donated sea ambulance was larger and featured more medical facilities than the existing 25 Maldivian sea ambulances. The 26-meter-long vessel was equipped with a “mini-medical theater,” including facilities for scans, electrocardiography tests, intravenous therapy, and oxygen delivery. The Chinese Embassy reported in July 2018 that the ambulance would improve the health and well-being of the Maldivian people. Many Maldivians live on remote islands and have poor medical conditions, so the ambulance would greatly improve the ability to transport and treat them. According to the Edition, medics had encountered drawbacks while transferring emergency patients from the atolls to Malé because of the length of travel, and the donation of the fully-equipped sea ambulance would help alleviate this problem. The Coast Guard was to manage to the new vessel.