President Dr Mohamed Muizzu has formally appointed former cabinet ministers Adam Shareef Umar and Thoriq Ibrahim to diplomatic posts abroad.
At a ceremony held at the President’s Office on Thursday morning, the President presented Adam Shareef with his letter of credence as the Maldives’ Ambassador to Qatar. Thoriq Ibrahim was presented with his letter of credence as the Maldives’ Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.
The appointments follow parliamentary approval granted on June 15.
Adam Shareef previously served as Minister of Cities, Local Government and Public Works, while Thoriq served as Minister of Tourism and Environment during the current administration.
Both were among several ministers who left the cabinet in April as part of a wider government reshuffle. Following their departure from ministerial office, they were appointed as ambassadors-at-large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The reshuffle took place shortly after the April 4 local council elections and a referendum on aligning presidential and parliamentary elections, both of which resulted in setbacks for the government.
The President’s Office said at the time that the cabinet changes were intended to give the President room to govern in line with public expectations.
With the latest appointments, the two former ministers are set to take up diplomatic responsibilities in two key Gulf countries with which the Maldives maintains close political, economic and people-to-people ties.
