Seychelles’ new foreign minister has said he is determined to carry on with President James Michel’s active economic diplomacy to bring more overseas support and benefits for our country in the current global climate.

 

Jean-Paul Adam, the youngest minister in Seychelles’ history, has expressed his willingness and determination to carry on with the remarkable work done by Mr Michel while the foreign affairs portfolio was under his responsibility after Patrick Pillay retired last year.

 “I also appreciate the fact that he has placed his confidence in me and I feel honoured and proud to serve my country,” said Mr Adam.

He said foreign affairs is not a new field for him as he worked with the ministry for about eight years and did his master’s degree in international political economy.

Talking about our foreign policy and international politics, he said as a country Seychelles has projected its image very well overseas.

 

This image has been, and is still being, projected not only by those working in foreign affairs but also by the Seychelles Tourism Board and other organisations.

Mr Adam explained that during the Cold War we had a different kind of politics, which permitted us to maximise the benefits, but after that international politics changed dramatically.

“Despite our dynamism we became a victim of our own success – after the Cold War we were classified as a middle-income country and as a result we did not get the same access to grants as before,” he said.

This was a challenge for our development and many people did not recognise it as such.
“Many economic problems that followed arose because of the ways we had to adapt ourselves to these challenges,” added Mr Adam.
“We had to take commercial credits which were not sustainable.”

The economic crisis that hit the world in 2008 has created a new global situation, and today Seychelles is in yet another phase of its international relations, he said.
 
Since this crisis all countries’ situations have changed as the economic power base is no longer the same.
Mr Adam said our active economic diplomacy is an approach that allows us as a small country to turn challenges to our advantage.

“We are already seeing good results from our economic reform programme, we have taken risks and needed great courage but it worked for us,” he said.

President Michel has shown the world and international organisations that Seychelles is a serious and mature country – and this has helped us to win their full support, Mr Adam said.

For example, during the economic reform the European Union (EU) has seen the good governance and transparency that exist here and has decided not only to finance our projects but provide us with budget support directly through the treasury. Not all countries in the region have been recognised in this way.

Furthermore, Mr Michel has worked hard and negotiated for a substantial reduction in our debts as we have spent the money we have been lent wisely.

Mr Adam said it is vital in this new phase that we do not just sit and wait for a country to tell us what we should do.
“We have seized the opportunity to go to our partners and let them know what we are doing and how we are adapting to the new economic scenario,” he said.

This approach has been adopted with partners such as the EU, China and India. Seychelles has put a lot of effort into enhancing and establishing excellent relations with these new economic powers.

“We also need to develop relations with the Middle Eastern countries from where much investment is now coming,” said Mr Adam.
Speaking about the internal restructuring of his ministry, he said he will carry on with what has been established by the former principal secretary Barry Faure, as it is in line with the government’s policy.
 
He said it is vital for his ministry’s policies to complement those of the government and also to relate to such issues as climate change, renewable resources and piracy.

Mr Adam’s late father Ralph also held ministerial positions in the health, industry and tourism sectors, but he has never aspired to follow in his father’s footsteps, he said.

He has always wanted to contribute towards his country as any good citizen would, he stressed.

Mr Adam has a degree in English literature and French from the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom.

 Before his appointment as minister, he has been working in the President’s Office for five years and was also a part-time lecturer with the Manchester University Twinning Programme here.

Apart from his government work, he is also a good swimmer and has won medals while representing Seychelles at international competitions.

 

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