Gov’t Launches National ID Printing Services in Kudahuvadhoo

The government has launched National ID printing services in Kudahuvadhoo in Dhaalu Atoll.

This development, achieved in collaboration with the Dhaalu Atoll Council, makes Kudahuvadhoo the second location outside the capital, Malé, to offer ID card printing services. The first was GA. Villingili, where services began earlier this year.

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The inauguration ceremony was attended by Minister of Homeland Security and Technology, Ali Ihusaan, and Minister of Cities, Local Government and Public Works, Adam Shareef. Also present were Kudahuvadhoo MP Hussain Hameed, members of the Dhaalu Atoll Council, Deputy Minister Ahmed Ali, who heads the Department of National Registration (DNR), and other senior officials from the Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology.

This expansion of ID printing facilities is part of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu’s campaign pledge to enable ID card services in every atoll.

The journey of national identity services in the Maldives began in 1984 with the establishment of a unit dedicated to collecting citizens’ identity information, which later became the Department of National Registration in 1993. Currently, there are 174 DNR collection centres across the country.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the DNR launched online applications for ID cards in 2021. Last year, the department further enhanced its services by upgrading the online application portal and facilitating the shipment of completed ID cards directly to the applicant’s respective island councils.