Remarks for UN Resident Coordinator Mr. Hao Zhang delivered at the Opening of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, Villingili

The UN welcomed the opening of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, a milestone in enhancing maritime safety, search and rescue, and cooperation.

Your Excellency, President of the Republic of Maldives Dr. Mohamed Muizzu
Honourable Minister of Defence, Mr. Hassan Rasheed
Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms. Iruthisham Adam
Chief of the Maldives National Defence Force, Major General Ibrahim Hilmy
Ambassador of Japan to the Maldives, Ms. Ishigami Rumiko
High Commissioner of Australia to the Maldives, Mr. David Jessup
Special Envoy to the Indian Ocean, Hon. Tim Watts MP
Commandant of the Maldives Coast Guard, Brigadier General Mohamed Saleem
Colleagues from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime,
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning.

On behalf of the United Nations in the Maldives, it is a privilege to be here this morning for the opening of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre.
Mr. President, we are deeply honoured that you are here today. Your presence to open this Centre is a source of great encouragement to the Coast Guard, to UNODC and the whole United Nations in Maldives, and to all our partners.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea calls on every State to maintain an effective search and rescue service, and to cooperate with its neighbors to that end. We are grateful that, through the efforts of many partners, this Centre now stands ready to serve that purpose.

Covering nearly 900,000 square kilometres of ocean with less than 300 square kilometres of land is a significant challenge. Responding to emergencies far from shore requires strong coordination. A Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre brings this response together, receiving distress calls, coordinating rescues, and ensuring agencies work collectively to save lives.

This Centre is the next step in that shared work. It strengthens what the Coast Guard already does, bringing coordination, training and operations together in one purpose-built home. As activity at sea grows, and as search and rescue and maritime law enforcement become more demanding, the Coast Guard needs more well-trained officers. The Centre helps meet that need, with an auditorium, classrooms, and accommodation for trainees and instructors. We hope it will serve the Maldives today and strengthen the country's capabilities for the years ahead.

The Centre's potential can also reach beyond these islands. In time, it can grow into a hub for the region, where officers from neighbouring countries train together and learn from one another. A facility like this allows partners to pool their expertise, to train more of their people, and to make capacity building across the region more sustainable.

I want to acknowledge all the partners involved throughout this project, especially the Maldives National Defense Force, Government of Japan and Government of Australia SIWEC and the UN agencies. It is these partnerships, built over several years, that turned a plan into the Centre we open today, and it is on that partnership that much of our future work will rest.

Allow me, before I conclude, to convey our warm greetings to the Government and people of the Maldives on your Independence Day, which you marked yesterday. It is especially meaningful to reach this milestone in the same week.

Once again, Mr. President, thank you for your presence. I also thank the distinguished guests and dignitaries who have joined us today. My congratulations to the Maldives Coast Guard, and my best wishes for the work that begins here.

Thank you.