The Ministry of Homeland Security and Technology has gathered biometric data from more than 4,000 expatriates as part of Operation Kurangi, an ongoing effort to regularise undocumented migrants in the Maldives. Launched in May, the operation has recorded data from 4,272 expatriates across 45 inhabited islands. The island of Kaafu Maafushi, known for its tourism-related businesses, has seen the highest number of registrations, with 1,076 expatriates added to the system. Kaafu Hinmafushi, where the operation began, follows closely behind, with 701 individuals now registered.
Other islands, including Dhidhhoo, Alifushi, Dhuvaafaru, Gaafaru, Gan, and Hithadhoo, have also seen significant data collection efforts, contributing to the Ministry’s goal of completing the operation across all inhabited islands. As of now, data collection has been completed in eight of the 45 islands.
Operation Kurangi is being carried out in collaboration with Maldives Police Service and Maldives Immigration. The initiative aims to ensure that all expatriates in the country are verified and their biometric data recorded. According to Minister Ali Ihusan, by the end of this two-phase, three-year operation, no expatriate in the Maldives will remain undocumented.
This initiative follows a similar campaign launched by the previous administration in 2019, which aimed to tackle the issue of undocumented migrants by registering over 40,000 individuals. However, that effort did not fully resolve the issue and the process was eventually halted.
In addition to Operation Kurangi, Maldives Immigration is conducting a separate operation to identify and deport undocumented migrants and those violating immigration regulations. Since President Dr Mohamed Muizzu took office, over 4,000 expatriates have been deported as part of this ongoing effort.
