Dunya Maumoon

Dunya (or Dhunya) Maumoon (born 20 March 1970) is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs (2013-2016), Government of Maldives and the daughter of Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, the former President of the Maldives.

Maumoon is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Maldives. Ms. Maumoon left the office regarding a conflict between the President of PPM Uz. Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom and the President of Maldives Mr. Abdullah Yamin. Until then she remained holding the main shield of Maldives, protecting and justifying the current government. As per the local media, Ms. Maumoon left the office because of the conflicts in death penalty which many scholars both local and international told that is not as per Islamic Shari'ah.

Ms. Maumoon completed her BA (Hons) Degree at the University of Cambridge, England, in 1992 and was a Haddon Scholar at the University for her excellent academic achievements. She went on to complete her MPhil Degree at the London School of Economics in 1996. The focus of her research was on “Gender Activism and the Islamic Revival’.

Ms. Maumoon began her professional career at the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in the Maldives in 1998, and remained with the UNFPA for over 8 years. Working closely with the Maldives Government of the time, she was able to successfully engage with a number of stakeholders, including the civil society, on initiatives relating to population and development, reproductive health, and gender. Several key studies were successfully completed during this time. These included both the 1999 and 2004 Reproductive Health Surveys as well as the 2006 Survey on Women’s Health and Life Experience, which gathered data on the sensitive issue of violence against women.

Through her commitment and work Ms. Maumoon was able to contribute positively to promoting the rights of women and men as well as adolescents and youth in the Maldives. In an inter-agency role, Ms. Maumoon also contributed positively to better understanding and strategic interventions in the areas of HIV/AIDs as well as drug use, which was a growing problem in the Maldives. In particular, she worked with the Government to launch life skills education for youth. When the Asian Tsunami struck the Maldives in December 2004, Ms. Maumoon played a lead role in alleviating the hardship suffered by her fellow Maldivians as a part of the UN inter-agency relief and rehabilitation effort.

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