The NDR is serviced by a domestic airport at Hanimaadhoo but at present there are no hotels or other facilities servicing international tourists, nor are there any resorts.

Yachting tourists, however have shown interest in Uligamu in the Haa Alifu Atoll and there are proposals for a marina to be built in the atoll. In the virtual absence of tourism in the NDR, fishing predominates,as a primary economic activity and agriculture as a secondary economic activity, but the dominance of fishing or agriculture varies from island to island, e.g., Kelaa specializes in growing bananas, papayas, and sweet potatoes. Rainfall averages 2,000 millimetres per year but the NDR does experience drought conditions for up to three months at a time. Coral is still widely used for building purposes. The harbour at Kulhuduffushi is protected and caters to fishing, cargo, and passenger boats. It has a small boat building industry.

Out of the 9 focus islands in the NDR, 24 hours of electricity is available on three islands where the service is provided by the State Electric Company Limited, four islands have electricity provided by a private party and electricity is available for 12 hours and one island has no electricity at all. The telecommunications company Dhiraagu, has provided telephone services to all focus islands and Kulhuduffushi, has also a media centre. The Northern Secondary School, which opened in Kulhuduffushi in 1998, was the first secondary school in the NDR. The first regional hospital in the country was also established in Kulhuduffushi and this has recently been replaced with a new hospital. The social profile of the NDR is notable for a large absence of adult males who work as seamen, or in Male', or on tourist resorts. Kulhuduffushi has a variety of employment, while the other focus islands have much more limited opportunities. Average household income is around Rf2,500 (or $200) per month of which 10 percent is spent on power bills. The expressed needs of the people center around health, education, and youth recreational facilities.

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The SDR is serviced by a domestic airport at Gan which also has a 175 bed tourist hotel and a few garment factories. There are preparations for the nearby island of Villingili to become a privately operated tourist resort. Tourist attractions include the chance to mix with the local people and the availability of cycling as a means of touring five islands. A dive center operates and a range of excursions are offered.

Seenu Atoll has not been a tuna fishing atoll in the way many other atolls in the Maldives have been. This is due to the lack of tradition of live bait pole and line fishing, and the seasonal shortages of bait. There are four fishing vessel harbors in the atoll including those at Feydhoo and Hithadhoo. The harbor at Hithadhoo will be primarily a cargo port with a large reclaimed area with potential for shore-based infrastructure such as ice plants, cold storage, and fish processing facilities. Among the focus islands of the SDR, only Hithadhoo has any agriculture potential. Coconuts are common as garden trees and in plantation form. Taro, sweet potato, finger millet, and yams are grown. Most home gardens grow bananas and mangoes. Tomatoes are also grown commercially in Hithadhoo. The focus islands all have electricity and telephone services. A large secondary school has recently been built at Hithadhoo under World Bank funding and there is also a good regional hospital on the island.

The absence of adult males is even more pronounced in the SDR than in the NDR. The education of those from the SDR is generally better than from most other parts of the country, especially in terms of literacy in English. Therefore, the opportunity for jobs in Male' or on resorts is higher than elsewhere. Average household income is similar to the NDR (Rf 2,500 per month). The expressed needs of the people center around employment, better streets and roads (currently an environmental hazard due to poor drainage), the shortage of land, and cleaning up the environment

The approximately 10.5 km road that runs from Gan to Hithadhoo in the SDR is in reality only a road interconnecting the island communities. Within these communities a well structured street pattern exists and the road takes any number of paths depending on the state of the surface of the streets. Due to lack of maintenance and little drainage, the streets are heavily potholed and retain water from rainfall for several days, making both pedestrian and vehicular traffic difficult. There is a need to relocate the road to the lagoon coastline so that through traffic does not inconvenience the settled areas. Community pride and responsibility for their environment mean most people maintain the street outside their property by purchasing and spreading coral chips. Major repairs are undertaken by the Ministry of Construction and Public Works (MCPW) and paid for out of the Government budget, which cannot always provide sufficient funds. Kulhuduffushi in the NDR has only about 50 vehicles, but a well laid out pattern of streets. As in the SDR, the streets are heavily potholed and retain water for hours after rain.

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Neither Kulhuduffushi nor the Gan-Hithadhoo stretch of islands have piped water supplies or piped sewerage. For water supplies, they rely on collected and stored rainwater for drinking and cooking, and on wells for bathing and washing. In Kulhuduffushi, both the community and households collect and store rainwater, whereas in Gan-Hithadhoo only households do so because the annual rainfall pattern is more uniform. Sanitation is affected partly by pour-flush latrines connected to septic tanks (about half) and partly by use of holes in the backyards that are dug and covered after use. The freshwater lens, underlying each island, shows indications of pollution both from both salinity and fecal conforms. While it is not yet at a level to cause alarm for washing and bathing purposes, it is of concern for those who cannot afford rainwater collection and storage facilities, as their alternative is to use well water for drinking and cooking purposes - and the water is not always disinfected by boiling or chlorination. There is also concern about the extent of electric pumping of well water, and where septic tanks have been used, the design, construction, and maintenance have not always been appropriate nor adequate. Monitoring of water levels and water quality in wells is needed.

There are designated solid waste dumpsites used by the public, but they are just places where people leave their rubbish to be scattered by pedestrian traffic, wind, animals, etc. There is no organized waste management. Kulhuduffushi is untidy with a lot of rubbish on the periphery of the settlements and on vacant plots of land; wheel barrows are used to cart refuse away from households on a daily basis. There is no attempt to reuse or recycle, even though much garden rubbish such as clippings, twigs, and branches could be turned into soil additives. In the Gan- Hithadhoo area, the official dumpsites are too far from the communities and are rarely used. Unofficial dumps spring up making an unsightly and malodorous environment, that people complain about, but it is a problem they have not resolved.

Some bury their rubbish on their properties. Generally, there is an urgent need and demand for a well managed waste disposal system.

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