Thilafushi (Dhivehi: ތިލަފުށި) is an artificial island created by government decision in 1991[1] as a municipal landfill situated to the west of Malé, and is located between Kaafu Atoll's Giraavaru and Gulhifalhu of the Maldives.

Waste received from Malé was deposited into the midst of the pit, which was topped off with a layer of construction debris and then uniformly levelled with white sand.

The current (major) industrial activities in the island are boat manufacturing, cement packing, methane gas bottling and various large scale warehousing.

In 2005 it was estimated that 31,000 truckloads of garbage are transported to Thilafushi annually, where it is dumped in large piles and eventually used to reclaim land and increase the size of the island.

[7] According to official statistics, a single tourist produces 3.5 kg of garbage a day, twice as much as someone from Malé and five times more than anyone from the rest of the Maldives archipelago.

[11] The council signed a contract in 2011 with the Indian-based company, Tatva Global Renewable Energy to rehabilitate the island and manage the waste problem.