Minister Adam addressing guests at the Itec Day ceremony

He was speaking at a recent gathering at the Indian High Commission with Seychellois who have trained under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation Agreement programme. The event was also held to mark the annual Itec Day.

Mr Adam extended his personal thanks to Indian high commissioner Asit Kumar Nag, saying: “The relations between two countries always start as relations between individuals. I think one of the major successes of the Itec programme is that it has brought Seychellois closer to Indians in professional situations, which have built lasting friendships that we are celebrating this evening.

“By bringing people together, the Itec programme constitutes a mainstay in the longstanding relationship between India and Seychelles.

“Itec is a prominent example of how India has stood by Seychelles in many ways through our economic and social development.”

Itec was launched in 1964 as a bilateral programme of help, and since then over 500 Seychellois from various sectors have benefited from the training programmes on offer.

“Itec is about cooperation and partnership for mutual benefit,” said Mr Nag.
“India and Seychelles enjoy warm and cordial ties, and we are committed to human resources development and capacity building in Seychelles.”

Since the programme was launched, the Indian government has spent over R500 million a year in the African region and has provided over US $3 billion worth of technical help to developing countries.

In 2010, another six Seychellois civilians and 25 defence personnel were identified for training under the Itec programme. Besides this, 20 personnel of the Seychelles People’s Defence Forces’ Tazar unit have been chosen for training in various Indian defence establishments.