Congratulations

Madam Pool, 

It is with great humility that I write to congratulate you on the extensive work you have provided for the Consuls of Seychelles 2014 Conference. Your suggestions, creative ideas and excellent results should be a true model for the rest of the Consuls.

I am proud to know you and to be a member of such an outstanding group.

I look forward to supporting you in 2016.

With regard, 

Beth

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A Determined Island Voice: Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosts successful Open Day

A Determined Island Voice: Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosts successful Open Day

23.04.2014

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted its fourth Open Day themed ‘Seychelles-A Determined Island Voice;’ that is testament to the robust political will and diplomatic efforts in projecting Seychelles’ voice on the international arena and championing the cause of development for other Small Island Developing States.

This year’s Open Day highlighted the work that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does by giving members of the public an insight into how the workings of the Ministry influences their lives in subtle yet vital ways.

Some of the main topics exhibited this year were:

• The structure of the United Nations with specific focus on the Security Council in view of Seychelles’ own bid for seat as a non-permanent member of the Security Council,
• The ‘Blue Economy’ and its importance to insular small island nations such as Seychelles,
• Human Rights
• Small Island Developing States and Climate Change
• Regional Integration
• Maritime Security

The Open Day this year coincides with the Biennial Consular Conference and as such Seychelles’ Consuls present took the opportunity to tour the exhibition of the Open Day at Maison Quéau de Quinssy.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jean–Paul Adam officially launched the Open Day reiterating what encompasses the meaning of the chosen theme “A determined island voice’ cannot simply be an isolated cry for help or a shout for assistance.  It is rather a collection of opinions and voices that together unite to focus our efforts.  No individual can be eclipsed in this voice- there is always room for many views. But as whole, it is a reflection of the ambitions of the Seychellois people- and a wider reflection of what it means to be an islander on what is essentially a ‘blue planet”

Minister Adam further noted that Seychelles is fundamentally connected to the world in a global family of nations and strives to further foster these connections. The Minister affirmed that this connectivity was both a source of vulnerability and for strength stating “We are the most likely to be affected by global tremors- but we can also bounce back the quickest.  Our own experience in rebounding from the global financial crisis or in tackling piracy provides an evident example.”

Minister Adam commented on Seychelles’ bid for a non-permanent seat on the Security Council as a core feature of the Open Day. He asserted that although such a bid would require a greater commitment of resources, the additional resources would mainly be in the form of human capital. “Investments in human capital are at the core of sustainable development for Small Island Developing States” said the Minister.

In the context of the United Nations Security Council bid, the Minister noted that Seychelles was determined to be proactive in its approach to international relations and furthermore has the responsibility to be a strong and determined voice for those voices that are often marginalised.

The Principle Secretary For Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Maurice Loustau-Lalanne also addressed the dignitaries, and took the opportunity to thank all the Consuls present for their tireless efforts in promoting the Seychelles and acting as defenders and promoters of her foreign policy abroad.

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Appointment of the Chief Executive Officer of the Industrial Estates Authority and its Board of Directors

Appointment of the Chief Executive Officer of the Industrial Estates Authority and its Board of Directors

Mon, 21 April 2014

The President’s Office has announced the appointment of  Mr Vic Tirant as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Industrial Estates Authority, effective from the 10th April, 2014.

The Authority was set up following the enactment of the Industrial Estates Authority Bill by the National Assembly.

The role of the Industrial Estates Authority is to develop and manage industrial estates and micro-enterprise premises in collaboration with Ministries and government agencies concerned. It will also oversee the performance of contracts relating to infrastructure development of industrial estates and micro enterprise premises.

The Members of the Board of Directors of the Industrial Estates Authority has also been announced. They have been appointed for a 3-year period.

The full composition of the Board is as follows:
Ms Marise Berlouis                                   Chairperson
Mr Vic Tirant                                            CEO/Member
Mr Brian Changty-Seng                             Member
Ms Nanette Laure                                     Member
Ms Chantal Renaud                                  Member 
Mr Franky Madeleine                                Member
Mr Terry Biscornet                                    Member
Mr Tim Marie                                           Member

Appointment of the Chief Executive Officer of the Small Business Financing Agency 

The President’s Office has also clarified that the Chief Executive Officer of the Small Business Financing Agency is Ms Rosanda Alcindor; her appointment is effective from the 1st March, 2014.

It will be recalled that Board of the Agency is chaired by Ms Doreen Arnephy, and comprises 6 other members, as announced last Thursday.

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The people of Seychelles join President Michel in expressing great sorrow in the wake of ferry accident in South Korea

The people of Seychelles join President Michel in expressing great sorrow in the wake of ferry accident in South Korea

21.04.2014

President James Michel in a letter addressed to Her Excellency Park Geun-Hye, President of the Republic of Korea, expressed great sorrow upon learning of the ferry accident off the coast of South Korea, claiming so many young lives.

In the wake of the tragedy, on behalf of the Government and people of Seychelles, President Michel conveyed his deepest condolences to the President of South Korea, the People and families affected by the tragedy.

In conclusion he noted “our thoughts and prayers are with the Korea, as search and rescue efforts continue, and we are hopeful that as many lives as possible will be saved.”

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Seychelles provides Blue Economy inspiration for the first comprehensive fishing strategy for Somalia

Seychelles provides Blue Economy inspiration for the first comprehensive fishing strategy for Somalia

08.04.2014

Following the visit of a delegation led by the Somali Minister of Fisheries, H.E Mr. Mohammed Olow, Seychelles and Somalia have underlined the opportunities that exist to use Seychelles’ experience in developing a platform to relaunch Somali fisheries strategy and also strengthen the platform for the development of a Blue Economy in the region.

The Somali Minister and his delegation concluded their visit with discussions with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Paul Adam, and Minister for Natural resources, Peter Sinon at Maison Queau de Quinssy on Monday 7^th April.

The high level delegation from the Federal Republic of Somalia undertook a fact finding mission to Seychelles where they have met with key Government officials and other relevant stakeholders on how best to develop the Somali fisheries sector.

The visit which was facilitated by the United Nations Food and Agricultural Programme and involved stakeholders from the regional fisheries groupings from different parts of Somalia (such as Somaliland, Puntland and other semi-autonomous regions) also ended with an agreement on the framework for a comprehensive fisheries development strategy for the first time which allows for revenue sharing among the regions.

This agreement was hailed by the Somali minister as historic, and would provide a platform for the development of fisheries in Somalia.  Among the key steps agreed include the strengthening of Somali fisheries legislation, as well as efforts to establish a fisheries authority, strengthen control and monitoring, and also work towards the finalization of the Somalia submission to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) regarding the delimitation of Somalia’s EEZ.

“It is well known that Seychelles has been at the forefront of the fight against piracy.  But we also know that the root causes of piracy are due to the lack of economic opportunities in Somalia.  Seychelles has consistently called on the international community to assist Somalia in building its economy.  Even though we are a small country, we are happy and proud to help Somalia by sharing our experiences in this way- and we believe that a ‘blue economy’, entails the development of a situation where all states can benefit from the oceanic resources at their disposal”, Minister Adam stated.

Minister Adam, mentioned that it was a privilege for Seychelles to be viewed as a successful model for fisheries that could be emulated in Somalia and would support Somalia as an Indian Ocean neighbour in its mission to establish a functioning fisheries industry, which would contribute to stability in Somalia and promote peaceful, shared and sustainable exploitation of our oceanic spaces.

Minister Sinon stressed that the two countries were connected by the sea, and that Seychelles would support the nascent steps being made to make fisheries a vital part of a rejuvenated Somali economy.  The Minister noted that Seychelles was always aiming to balance the development of all sectors of its fisheries- from artisanal to semi-industrial and industrial fisheries and was happy to use these experiences in helping Somalia to simultaneously build its local capacity while also attracting investment.  He mentioned that it was foreseeable that Seychelles; train key stakeholders in Somalia through technical exchanges, help harmonise Somalia’s respective fishing laws and ensure establishment of indigenous capacity fro academic and technical research centres for fisheries.

The Somali delegation expressed their interest in not only learning from Seychelles’ past experience in creating a thriving fisheries sector but also establishing firmer ties between the countries in light of the ‘Blue Economy’ framework once Somali has implemented the basis for a functioning fishing industry, including through joint ventures.

During their visit, the Somali delegation have toured the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, the Seychelles Fisheries Association and the Indian ocean Tuna cannery to acquaint themselves with the operational aspect of a Fisheries industry

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National Assembly - Training beefs up capacity of public accounts committee

National Assembly - Training beefs up capacity of public accounts committee

05-April-2014

The Seychelles National Assembly is hosting a three-day training for members of the Finance and Public Accounts Committee (FPAC) and its technical officials.
The April 3-5 meeting is being held at the Berjaya Beau Vallon Bay Resort & Casino. 

Financed and led by the South Africa Development Community Organisation of Public Accounts Committees (Sadcopac), the training is aimed at getting a greater understanding of the fundamental principles underlying the work of the FPAC; to understand good practice guide, audit and budget processes.

It was the Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Patrick Herminie, who officially opened the training on Thursday in the presence of the leader of government business in the National Assembly, Marie-Antoinette Rose; leader of the opposition in the National Assembly and chairperson of the FPAC, David Pierre; Sadcopac deputy secretary general Nehemiah Modubule; members of the National Assembly and other distinguished guests.

“FPAC is ineffective if it lacks the knowhow and the necessary resources to carry out its roles and functions in an ever changing environment; hence the need for a proper capacity development programme,” said Dr Herminie. 

“Training, like the one being held today, will provide our finance and public accounts committee with the opportunity to share best practices and experiences, harmonisation and standardisation, and to strengthen oversight and accountability,” Dr Herminie said.

“Allow me to express my sincere appreciation to the Sadcopac and the association of the public accounts committee of South Africa for facilitating this training for the FPAC. I have no doubt that the training will provide the members of the committee with the necessary tools to more effectively carry out their oversight role,” Dr Herminie added.
“One very important thing that we are going to learn in this training is the practice guide that is provided by Sadcopac that we here in the FPAC we need to be able to work according to its standard,” Mr Pierre said.

Addressing those present, Mr Modubule said “Sadcopac will continue to organise various in-country training seminars/workshops for FPAC members as well as individual members at country level depending on the need of the individual FPAC requirements from time to time. This will depend on the availability of financial support from development partners and other stakeholders”.

“It is our wish that our respective parliaments should realise the importance of FPAC and therefore be in a position to fund them adequately so that we do not rely too much on donors. We should be self sustainable,” Mr Modubule added.

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Seychelles, USA cooperating very well

‘Seychelles, USA cooperating very well’

04-April-2014

Seychelles and the United States of America (USA) are cooperating very well on maritime security and environmental issues, American ambassador Robert Jackson has said.
Ambassador Jackson, who is the principal deputy assistant officer of the Bureau of African Affairs in the US Department of State, was speaking to the local media after paying a courtesy call on Vice-President Danny Faure yesterday morning at State House.

He was accompanied by US ambassador to Seychelles Sharon Villarosa and political officer Maroof Ahmed.

“I have come to Seychelles because we (the USA) haven’t had a senior visitor here for some time. We have a lot of ongoing activities with Seychelles and we are cooperating very well on maritime security and environmental issues,” said ambassador Jackson. 

He added: “I thought it was important to recognise that cooperation and make certain we continue to move forward. The vice-president and I had a very useful conversation about our relationship and we look forward to building on the projects we have in place. We talked about maritime security issues, the forthcoming US-Africa summit to which President Barack Obama has invited African leaders, the theme of that summit, peace and security, development and investment, human rights, governance and democracy.  We also talked specifically about trafficking in persons, and the proposed accession of Seychelles to the World Trade Organisation.”

Ambassador Jackson noted that since ambassador Villarosa and her team have been making a lot of effort to spend more time in Seychelles, this is something the US are committed to do and he doesn’t think they will be undertaking any new initiative in the short term. 

“But I want to make it certain that on issues of maritime security, efforts to promote real environmental issues like climate change, management of ocean resources and on efforts to deal with international issues like trafficking in persons, we are in sync, we are moving together,” said ambassador Jackson who has previously served as ambassador to the Republic of Cameroon.

In 2006, he received the James A. Baker III – C. Howard Wilkins, Jr., award for outstanding deputy chief of mission and has also received three individual superior honour awards and two individual meritorious honour awards.

Meanwhile, the landmark US-Africa summit in August will seek to widen US trade, development and security ties with an increasingly dynamic African continent.
The August 5-6 summit in Washington will advance the White House’s administration's focus on trade and investment in Africa, and highlight America's commitment to Africa's security, its democratic development, and its people.

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Celebrating 20 years of consumer protection

Celebrating 20 years of consumer protection

03-April-2014

The National Consumers Forum (Natcof) which was set up on April 22, 1994, will celebrate its twenty years of existence on April 22 this year with three major celebrations.

They are an international conference, an exhibition of the unit’s work done during these twenty years and an award ceremony recognising founder members of the association.

The celebrations will fall under the theme ‘Celebrating 20 years of Consumer Protection’ in Seychelles.

“We will hold an international conference as the main activity on April 22 itself at the Seychelles Trading Company’s conference centre,” said Natcof’s chairperson Raymonde Course.

Mrs Course said that because Natcof is a full member of Consumers International, representatives of this world body will also attend.

But before the international conference, Mrs Course said Natcof will hold an exhibition of photos and writings portraying the works done by the unit for consumer protection during the twenty years of its existence. The exhibition will take place at the gallery on the ground floor of Independence House.

The third major activity on the agenda is an award ceremony at the STC’s Club 55 where founder members of Natcof will be recognised and awarded for their contributions in setting up the unit. “Without them Natcof would not be where it is today,” said Mrs Course.

“This event will also be held on April 22 just after the international conference as we are hoping to have the Consumers International representatives present,” Mrs Course said.
“As the twenty years celebrations will last throughout the year, there will always be some ongoing activities of some sort internally not really ‘en masse’,” she noted.

The poster ‘Natcof – Celebrating 20 years of Consumer Protection’ has been destined as advert to be stuck on the Seychelles Public Transport Corporation’s buses.
Natcof has also produced stickers for the Seychelles Licensing Authority to be used on vehicles.

Mrs Course also described briefly the role of the Fair Trading Commission (FTC) vis-à-vis Natcof as sometimes the public are not really clear of their two roles.

She said FTC administers the law where consumers are concerned while Natcof is more or less the consumers’ watchdog.

Going through a brief history of Natcof, Mrs Course said it all started with a group of people described as founding members who wanted a unit that will protect the consumers.
“We had to study and learn about consumers, consumerism, the advantages and disadvantages, what should be done and procedures needed to set up an organisation, in which country does such an organisation exist, in fact all that was needed to put up an organisation,” said Mrs Course.

She added that after the set up there was also the dilemma of how to make the organisation grow and make it carry out what it is supposed to do.

She said while they were getting in contact with international organisations with the same purpose, they came across a regional body in Africa for countries of the African region. It was there that they received lots of help in capacity building, enabling them to manage and run the then newly established Natcof.

At that time Lungos, which was already in existence in Seychelles, also helped them in how to manage a non-governmental organisation (NGO) body.
And today Natcof is focusing more on educating the public, especially school children. In fact, consumer education is now taught in schools.

“Consumers should know their rights and how to take their responsibilities when entering the market for their transactions,” said Mrs Course.

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2014 events in Seychelles

2014 events in Seychelles

28-March-2014

April 25-27 International Carnival of Victoria

Sample some of the world’s best carnivals like Rio in Brazil and Notting Hill in London in just one square kilometer in just one weekend!

 May 23-25 Fet Afrik  Celebrate Africa

A celebration of one of the cornerstones of Seychellois Creole culture, Africa, through food, music and dance.

 May 31 Miss Seychelles Pageant – Another World

Young women from islands of Seychelles and Seychellois communities dispersed around the globe vie for a chance to represent Seychelles in the prestigious annual Miss World contest, which Seychelles hosted twice in the late 1990s...... (More under TOURISM EXTRA).

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