20 Years of Excellence: Adam Ashraf Honored with PADI Service Award

Adam Ashraf receiving his 20-Year PADI Membership Award, with the certificate, plaque, and official 20-Year eBadge celebrating his dedication to diving.

This year, our Co-Founder and Course Director Adam Ashraf was honored with the 20-Year PADI Membership Award and presented with the official 20-Year Service Plaque at the age of 40—an extraordinary achievement that reflects his lifelong dedication to diving.

This recognition is especially significant, as it highlights that Adam has devoted half of his life to advancing the diving profession, educating future divers, and contributing to the global dive community. His leadership, passion, and vision have not only inspired countless students but also played a pivotal role in shaping the future of diving in the Maldives.

Ashraf’s journey is one of vision, determination, and impact. Within just a year of becoming an Open Water Scuba Instructor, he founded Dive Desk in Malé in 2014 with a mission to empower Maldivians to explore and showcase the country’s marine beauty through professional scuba diving. Over the course of a decade, he transformed Dive Desk from a PADI Dive Resort into the only PADI Platinum Instructor Development Center in the Maldives—a distinction that places the dive center among the finest in the world.

In February 2024, Adam expanded his vision further with the establishment of the Maldivian Academy of Diving in Himmafushi—a dedicated training facility providing accommodation and state-of-the-art resources for aspiring professionals. The Academy has already distinguished itself as the only PADI Five Star Career Development Center (CDC) in the Maldives, the highest designation for PADI institutions. It has also received top recognitions, including the Platinum Frequent Trainer Award in 2024, Gold Frequent Trainer Award in 2025, and the Outstanding Award for Professional Diver Training 2024 from PADI Europe, Middle East, and Africa.

Ashraf’s influence extends far beyond the Maldives. In 2017, his expertise was recognized internationally when he was recruited by Dive-Careers.com, the world’s largest PADI professional training network. Over the past eight years, he has played a key role in producing the highest number of PADI professionals in the Maldives, an achievement recognized with numerous annual trainer and service awards. These include multiple Elite Instructor Awards (100 certifications in 2017; 50 in 2018–2021; 200 in 2022; and 150 in 2023). Since achieving his Course Director rating in 2022, Adam has continued to excel, earning the Platinum Frequent Trainer Award in 2023 and 2024, followed by Gold in 2025.

His contributions have also been celebrated through other prestigious accolades, including the PADI Award for Outstanding Contributions to People and Humanity (2023), plaques for Outstanding Contributions to Professional Diver Training (2021, 2024), and now, the 20-Year Service Plaque—a testament to his enduring commitment to the diving community.

As we celebrate this milestone of 20 years as a PADI professional, we are immensely proud of Ashraf’s invaluable contributions to Dive Desk and the Maldivian Academy of Diving. His journey is living proof of what passion, perseverance, and vision can achieve—and an inspiration to the next generation of Maldivian dive professionals.

We cannot wait to see what the next 20 years will bring. Here’s to Ashraf and the continued growth of professional diving, both locally and internationally.