The ceremony took place at the Quirinale Palace in Rome on June 21.

Following the ceremony President Napolitano asked that Ambassador Morel convey to President James Michel his best wishes of success and accomplishment during his term in office following his re-election in last month’s presidential poll.

Discussions between Ambassador Morel and President Napolitano, along with other senior Italian government officials, focused on pertinent issues of national interest to Seychelles.
Of particular importance was the scourge of piracy and its impact on the country.

The Government of Italy will, as from July 1, assume the chairmanship of all military operations of Nato for six months, including those of the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.
 They have pledged to increase their resources and presence in combating piracy within ‘Operation Ocean Shield’ during that period with the added presence of one of their flagships in the Indian Ocean region, the vessel Andreadoria.

The Italian Ministry of Defence has also decided to establish a cooperation agreement with the Seychelles Coast Guard that would include joint exercises and exchange of information and intelligence on maritime security issues.

Other points of discussion included the promotion of tourism and trade between the two countries, the possibilities of training opportunities in the future, particularly in the tourism industry, Seychelles’ participation in the Milan Expo of 2015, collaboration within the United Nations system, with special reference to the cultural sector of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco).

Ambassador Morel also took this opportunity to thank the Italian Government for their recent donation of Euros 250,000 which has been used to buy equipment for the operating theatre of the Seychelles Hospital.