Mr Michel said yesterday: “Mathilda Twomey will become the first female judge in the history of Seychelles.
“I congratulate her on her achievement and wish her well in her new post. I hope other young women will look to her for inspiration for a career in the judiciary in the future.

“Her appointment is timely as we have recently celebrated 100 years of World Women’s Day; it is another victory for Seychelles.”

Mrs Twomey (née Butler-Payette) is a Seychellois barrister-at law who practised law in Seychelles between 1987 and 1995 as a senior state counsel and official notary, as well as a barrister/attorney undertaking criminal and civil litigation in courts and tribunals.

In 1992-93, she was a member of the Seychelles Constitutional Commission that drafted the Constitution of the Third Republic.

Since 1995 Mrs Twomey has been living and working in Ireland. From 1996 she worked as a regional coordinator for Multiple Sclerosis Ireland, a non-governmental organisation working in advocacy, policy development and legal advice for people with disabilities.

She is completing a master’s in law at the University of Ireland and also has a degree in French law from the University of Paris Sud, France, as well a bachelor’s degree in English and French law from the University of Kent, UK.