Seychelles’ image soared in the global arena as the world rolled out the red carpet wherever President James Michel went in 2011.

Tables and heads turned this year when the Seychelles that world media recently tried to compare to Somalia became “set to shift the balance of power among the world’s nuclear giants in the Indian Ocean”.

This was amid claims that China had changed policy and was setting up its first overseas military base here, adding to allegations that the US was poised to strike targets in Africa using armed drones from a secret airforce base in Seychelles.

Foreign Affairs Minister Jean Paul Adam said this was all due to the greater visibility that has followed President James Michel’s active diplomacy and overseas visits which world leaders have in many cases responded to by sending their top political, economic or military leaders and advisers here to cement heightened mutual ties.

The stories about a possible Chinese base, for example, emerged after Mr Michel visited China in October prompting a return visit by the giant Asian nation’s Defence Minister Liang Guanglie in response to the President’s request for increasing resources to fight piracy in the Indian Ocean.

Although the claims were incorrect, they certainly got the world thinking and searching their atlases for “this mighty Seychelles they keep hearing about yet can hardly see on their maps”.

Outside military and political circles, many who learned about us said they have discovered our potential as a regional hub with top Indian companies like the Polaris Financial Technology saying “Seychelles has the potential to be the financial technological hub for African countries and to extend its expertise to neighbouring countries while positioning itself as a global financial technology stronghold”.

In the economic domain, the world media thought Seychelles was heading into oblivion and a few years ago compared us with the failed state of Somalia, but when President James Michel and his emissaries stepped out and the world knew what Seychelles is all about, the same media now highlights our superior status that has attracted many to seek counsel from our experts on many areas, among them tourism, conservation and economic reforms.

Among Mr Michel’s travels this year have been his delegation’s January trip to India when he addressed the Delhi Sustainable Development Summit 2011, which was inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, with whom he later held talks on bilateral cooperation and regional security issues.

Climate change and sustainable development for small island states was one of the key issues he addressed, before taking part in the 11th Summit of World Sustainable Development Forum held under the theme: Tapping Local Initiatives and Tackling Global Inertia.

It was organised by The Energy and Resources Institute in New Delhi.
Among key people at the summit was Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and the President of the Dominican Republic Leonel Fernandez Reyna.

In August Mr Michel made a highly successful state visit to Australia saying he was greatly encouraged “as we have seen Australia is looking West towards the Indian Ocean and Africa and sees Seychelles as a leader in sustainable development of the Small Island Developing States as well as a leader for climate change advocacy.

Hitting sustainability myth on the head

During the visit, Mr Michel made an address at the Australian Institute of International Affairs and the Department of Business and Innovation in a speech themed:

Sustainable Development in a Globalised World – Perspectives from a Small Island Developing State.

He said we now face a crisis of sustainability and as things stand, the concept of sustainable development is just a myth because we cannot speak of sustainability while we see climate change threaten the very existence of thousands of islands, and the people who inhabit those islands, and we, as the human race, are as yet unable to act decisively.

“We cannot speak of sustainability while we continue to value consumerism above conservation.
 “We cannot speak of sustainability where the world is struggling with fuel and commodity prices that are spiraling out of control, and yet there is still insufficient investment in renewable energy and food security.”

During the visit he invited Australian businesses to invest in renewable energy projects here as well as explore opportunities for joint ventures in tourism projects such as water parks, and other eco-friendly, beneficial leisure attractions.

He said it was a pleasure to meet a wide range of Seychellois Diaspora in Australia, who have the potential to contribute to the development of Seychelles as well as Australia.

In Canberra, he met Governor General Quentin Bryce as well as Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

“We have reinforced our already excellent relations and pledged to intensify our cooperation and exchanges. We are particularly appreciative of the Australian government’s pledge to support the institutional framework of the Association of Small Island States, “said Mr Michel, who also met Defence Minister Stephen Smith and talked with him about maritime security and anti-piracy initiatives.

He also talked about development and environment issues with the Minister for Resources, Energy and Tourism, Martin Ferguson, and shared about Seychelles’ energy policy for 2010-2030, which emphasises energy efficiency and renewable energy.

He and the speaker of the House of Representatives, Harry Jenkins, and the President of the Senate John Hogg spoke on the possibilities of setting up of a parliamentary exchange visit between the Seychelles’ National Assembly and the Australian House of Representatives which could serve as an important platform for both countries to exchange views on mutual concerns while promoting bilateral cooperation in international cooperation, environmental protection and other topics.

In Brisbane, he met the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Queensland to discuss climate change, sea level rise and renewable energy.
He also met the deputy leader of the Opposition of the Australian Parliament, Julie Bishop.

Transfer of Chinese technology

It was in October that Mr Michel visited China in a visit that further cemented the countries’ 35-year-old ties.

He and his delegation met Chinese Vice-President Xi Jinping to assess the present state of bilateral relations and discuss new areas of future cooperation, both at the bilateral level and within the framework of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum. Other issues on the table included joint efforts in the fight against piracy as his team held separate talks on energy and transport and the transfer of Chinese technology – particularly, renewable energy – to Seychelles.

The visit brought together the Seychelles Tourism Board and the China National Tourism Administration in joint tourism promotion efforts where two agreements likely to boost visitor flow to Seychelles were signed.

The Chinese version of Mr Michel’s book Distant Horizons was launched then, and he handed copies of it to dignitaries from the tourism, business and cultural sectors among them China’s most famous navigator, Zhai Mo, who is expected to sail to Seychelles in 2012 with six ships and a crew of 100, as part of the events to mark 150 years of Chinese presence.

Mr Michel has repeatedly warned that the piracy is not a problem for Seychelles alone and it might get compounded if it is not tackled at its Somali roots.

He voiced the same concern at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth.

“We have succeeded in getting the world community to realise that this is not a localised problem but it is an international problem that requires an international response... I have warned in the past that the problem is piracy today, but tomorrow it is terrorism, and this is indeed what we are seeing develop, as we have seen in Kenya most recently,” said Mr Michel at the end of the first day of discussions.

He however commended the resolve of the Commonwealth countries to cooperate against piracy, which was expressed during the Indian Ocean Piracy Forum that was held in the margins of the CHOGM.

He said it was vital that those taking part agreed that regional ownership and burden sharing is essential in the combat, and also that the countries of the region share a common legal heritage that presents opportunities for Commonwealth as well as other organisations, to deliver legal assistances and support to criminal justice systems.

Warning world on piracy

He acknowledged the support of the European Union in the fight against piracy both in terms of the Atalanta operation as well as regional anti-piracy projects.

“The coast states of the Indian Ocean need more support – both in terms of maritime assets, in terms of prisons and in terms of legislative and human resource capacity building. These coastal states are in the majority Commonwealth states, and we salute the efforts of our partners, Mauritius, Kenya, Tanzania, The Maldives and Mozambique. We also thank the Government of India for its proactive role in helping our coastguard and training our military for appropriate response to piracy at sea. We believe the Commonwealth is ideally situated to bring more support to the member states to provide technical assistance for legal framework for prosecuting pirates,” he said.

He said the financiers of piracy must be targeted and pursued through surveillance, so that the true beneficiaries of the illegal trade may be brought to justice.

Among those at the CHOGM’s opening ceremony were Queen Elizabeth II, Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia Julia Guillard, and the secretary general of the Commonwealth Kamalesh Sharma along with heads of government and foreign affairs ministers of the 54 countries of the Commonwealth.

CHOGM 2011’s theme was Building Global Resilience - Building National Resilience.
In August Mr Michel met the chief executives of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, the Australian Institute of Marine Science and James Cook University in Townsville.

They talked about greater cooperation between these world class centres of marine research and conservation and the Seychelles Government and the University of Seychelles.

He visited the park authority’s aquarium and was briefed on the possibilities of creating such an educational and tourism attraction in the Seychelles.

“This would be a wonderful addition to our portfolio of eco-tourism projects and to showcase our natural heritage as well as provide the resources for marine research, educational visits and a new tourism venture,” he said.

He toured the facilities of the Australian Institute of Marine Science and was briefed on some of the latest reef and climate change research results.

Stronger presence in Middle East 

Amid the increasing economic importance of the Middle East as Europe experiences the financial crunch, Mr Michel last month opened Seychelles’ first diplomatic mission in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates.

The President, in his capacity as Minister for Tourism, also inaugurated the Seychelles Tourism Office now hosted in the same location.

The tourism office is expected to become a hub to promote Seychelles in the Middle East region, where travel and consumer spending power have increased in recent times.

He also held a series of meetings on bilateral issues including energy, defence and security issues.

Forrás: www.nation.sc