Unwind Maldives: WATER - The Stuff of Life!

Photo: Alila Villas Hadahaa as seen from distance

The international World Water Day marks yearly on March 22 as a means of advocating for sustainable management of freshwater resources and development. Water is a serious issue in the Maldives and when we say "water is life and death", we do mean it literally!

Did you know that 90% of the Maldives is water and the 10% that is land is scattered across 90,000 square meters within the Indian Ocean. Would you believe that a nation surrounded by water, still faces water shortages? Though the sea water is available in abundance, fresh water for drinking and sanitation is scarce in the Maldives as ground water is not safe for drinking. The Maldivian government along with foreign aid, private NGO's and international resorts are working to install desalination plants in populated islands.

Marking trans-boundary waters is a difficult task especially for a small island nation like the Maldives but extremely important as it contains most of our resources. Foreign fishermen often venture within the borders to fish illegally, especially extracting protected marine species like the coral, dolphins, shark and turtles.

In an article about Water, we certainly cannot leave out the effects of climate change on the Maldives. With the highest point of the Maldives bobbing only 1.5 meters above sea level, no wonder Maldives continues to be a strong advocate to curb global carbon emissions. Last year, the Maldivian cabinet donned on scuba gear and submerged underwater to highlight the threat of global warming to this low-lying nation.

At unwind® we believe that we all share a responsibility to manage and sustain the natural resources to ensure a safer future for the generations to come; hence we continue to present to you eco-friendly products and services.