Over 151,000 expatriates' information collected under Operation Kurangi: Minister

Minister of Home Affairs and Professional Development Ali Ihsan has stated that information on more than 151,000 expatriate workers has been collected so far under "Operation Kurangi," a government initiative to address the issue of illegal expatriates in the Maldives.

Speaking to state media, Minister Ali Ihsan shared details of the work done so far to regulate expatriate workers who have been staying in the Maldives illegally. He noted that under the work completed thus far, fingerprints (10 fingers) and facial recognition photos of 151,694 expatriate workers have been taken, and the database has been updated.

The Minister further said, "Now in our systems, we can see exactly who these people are. They can be biometrically identified. So from this point, we can directly track the individual. Identification is our primary task in this operation. The second task is to shape the law. This includes taking strict measures against those who neglect expatriates, imposing fines, and taking necessary actions against those who fail to pay."

Additionally, the Minister highlighted that since revealing the names of companies that brought expatriates to the Maldives without paying their visa fees, about a billion rufiyaa that was due to the state has been recovered over the past year and a half. He also mentioned in his speech that as a result of this work, a large number of illegal expatriates have now entered into the legal system.

The government continues to work on collecting biometric data of expatriates living in the Maldives and systematically solving the challenges faced in resolving this issue. "Operation Kurangi," the first phase of the government's efforts to find a permanent solution to the issue of illegal expatriates in the Maldives, was launched on May 3rd of last year. This work is being carried out jointly by the Ministry of Home Affairs and Professional Development, Maldives Police Service, and Maldives Immigration.