On 15 January, the President of Maldives Mohamed Muizzu visited the University of Tartu and met Rector Toomas Asser.
The President of the Republic of Maldives Mohamed Muizzu made an official visit to Estonia on 13–16 January at the invitation of President Alar Karis. The visit brings new opportunities for the two countries to develop cooperative relations in digital and cybersecurity, climate and environmental issues, and education and science.
President Muizzu arrived in Tartu on 15 January and was welcomed by Mayor Urmas Klaas at the town hall. The president and the mayor then came to the university's main building to meet Rector Toomas Asser. Ken Ird, Research Secretary of the University of Tartu Museum, led a tour of the main building and introduced the university’s history to the president of Maldives. After that, a meeting was held, in which the rector, the Head of International Cooperation Kristi Kerge, Associate Professor in Urban Environment Age Poom, and Associate Professor in Climate Physics Velle Toll attended. The university’s areas of research and development were introduced to the president.
During the meeting, President Muizzu was interested in how to cooperate with the university in the fields of education, research and continuing education to provide new learning opportunities for Maldivian students, teachers and other professionals. The participants also discussed the ways how the university’s research potential can be used to develop the digitalisation of public services and digital infrastructure in the Maldives.
In the afternoon, President Muizzu visited the Estonian Biobank. The president and his delegation were received there by Lili Milani, Head of the Biobank and Professor of Epi- and Pharmacogenomics. The guests were shown around the biobank and introduced to the research work of the Institute of Genomics, which supports the wider use of genetic data in Estonia’s healthcare system. The delegation expressed a keen interest in the gene donors’ portal MinuGeenivaramu, and the president expressed his wish to collaborate with the Estonian Biobank to collect and analyse genetic data from the Maldivian population.
President Muizzu also visited the Estonian National Museum to learn about Estonian history and cultural heritage.
Mohamed Muizzu was elected the President of the Republic of Maldives in 2023. This was the first visit of a head of state of the Maldives to Estonia and one of the first visits by President Muizzu to Europe.