The World bank Mission team met with the stakeholder Maldives Digital Service (MDS) today. MDS team was led by the Minister of State for Homeland Security and Technology, Dr. Mohamed Kinaanath. Ms. Shazra Mohamed Saeed (Project Manager), Mr. Hussain Naushad (Senior GDS Specialist), Hany Nasyr (Senior Software Engineer).

The mission team consisted of Task Team Leader Ms. Anna Metz (Senior Digital Development Specialist), Co-Task Team Leader Ms. Minita Mary Varghese (Digital Development Specialist), and former Task Team Leader Mr. Jerome Bezzina. Representing the D'MADD Project Management Unit (PMU) were Dr. Ibrahim Waheed (Project Manager), Mr. Ahmed Haleem (Communications Specialist), and Ms. Fathmath Shafa Hussain (Project Officer).

The World Bank team thanked the DMADD team and MDS for their support in making the Maldives Digital Summit 2026 a grand and successful event. Likewise, The Minister of State expressed gratitude as the event opened many opportunities of dialogue with stakeholder agencies and showcased the current state of the Maldives 2.0 initiative

The discussion then focused on implementation challenges as the project enters its final year. A key concern raised was the continued delay in the submission of the Personal Data Protection Bill to Parliament, which has affected the initiation of several procurement activities tied to major project investments. Participants noted that the legislative delay has implications for the timely delivery of project outcomes and may require adjustments to implementation timelines. Dr. Waheed emphasized the importance of accelerating activities that can proceed independently of the legislation and urged all stakeholders to maintain momentum. He further requested the full cooperation of the Maldives Digital Strategy (MDS) team in advancing pending tasks and ensuring that project objectives are achieved within the remaining implementation period.The World Bank team clarified to MDS on how the project is positioned to help the CRVSID system, a critical component for the National Digital Identity. These include procurement of software and hardware for the operation of robust CRVSID system. D’MADD has already worked with DNR to prepare the necessary System Requirement Specifications with assistance of an international firm. The activity was conducted with multiple stakeholder consultations and in-depth workshops. The World Bank team noted that the project will not facilitate issuance of ID cards itself.

Mr Naushad and Mr Hany from MDS also followed on the Digital Identity Bill that was crafted through the D’MADDD project assistance as the legislation is a key instrument in expanding the eFaas Digital Identity to the private sector.

The meeting concluded with the teams affirming confirmation to move towards achieving the project objectives.