Dhiraagu turns 37 today, marking more than three and a half decades of progress that chart the Maldives’ path from limited communications to a nation connected by modern digital infrastructure.
When Dhiraagu was established in 1988, communication across the scattered atolls relied heavily on fixed-line services. Its founding marked the first organised effort to connect the country through modern telecommunications.
For many Maldivians, the company’s history runs parallel to their own. Families remember the first landline installed at home, the arrival of mobile phones that changed how people stayed in touch across the islands, and the expansion of internet access that opened the world to a new generation. Successive decades saw each step forward become part of everyday life, shaping how communities learned, worked, and connected.
The company also became a marker of national progress. In 2019, Dhiraagu launched the Maldives’ first commercial 5G service, placing the country among the region’s early adopters of next-generation technology. Earlier this year, it reached another milestone by bringing fibre broadband to every inhabited island, ensuring even the most remote communities could access high-speed internet.
These achievements show how the Maldives has kept pace with global trends in connectivity despite the challenges of geography. An island nation that depends on tourism, trade, and services cannot thrive without reliable digital networks. Dhiraagu’s work in building and maintaining those networks demonstrates how telecommunications became not just a utility, but an enabler of national development.
At 37, Dhiraagu shows how a single company helped stitch together a country spread across hundreds of islands. What began with landlines has grown into a network that links homes, schools, hospitals, and businesses across the atolls. In that sense, Dhiraagu has become the nation’s connection, a presence that reflects how modern Maldives communicates, learns, and grows.
