Speaking at the High Level panel discussion on Maritime Security on the opening day of the leadership “Our Oceans Conference” in Malta this week, President Danny Faure delivered a poignant message to world leaders, entrepreneurs, civil society leaders, scientists and researchers on the importance of having resilient blue economies and to finding innovative and visionary solutions on how to conserve and sustainably use our Ocean, for the present and future generations.
President Faure emphasised that; “Maritime security is an extremely important component of the sustainable development of the ocean economy. One of the expected results of the blue economy strategy is greater protection for Seychelles’ ocean space and resources through better coordination across different sectors, application of protective measures and greater use of surveillance and enforcement tools. This is certainly a formidable challenge for a SIDS like Seychelles. But, because of our limited and competing resources, it is particularly important that we have a well-thought out maritime security strategy, and this is thus our commitment and we welcome any cooperation that may be extended to us in this regard.”
The 2017 edition “An Ocean for Life” aims to drive forward new collaborations in the following ocean areas– marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, climate-change, and this year’s 2 extra themes, maritime security and sustainable blue economy. President Faure was invited to share the Seychelles experience on these themes and also provide an update on the previously registered commitments made in 2016. The commitments were on the issuance of the first Blue Bonds in support of sustainable fisheries, and the debt swap to develop a marine spatial plan of our EEZ and designate 30% as marine protected areas. Read full article here
The Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust (SeCCAT) website is now live! Please click here to learn more about the Trust and the grants program.
“From small islands come big ideas,” President Danny Faure told world leaders in New York yesterday. He was referring to action Seychelles has been taking in recent years to find innovative ways to fund sustainable development through the 2030 Agenda and address climate change under the Paris Agreement.
THE Seychelles is an archipelago of 115 mostly tiny islands, whose collective area, at 460 sq km, is only about a third of London’s. But the country’s granite islands and coral atolls sit within an exclusive economic zone of 1.4m sq km. It is here, in the ocean, that conservationists are working on a new way for small countries to protect their marine environment. Read full article here
The Economist. 7 September 2017
Seychelles Debt-for-nature swap and marine planning. Photo: The Economist
Representatives from the Government of Seychelles will be attending the first ever UN Oceans Conference in New York City, 5-9 June 2017.
The high-level United Nations Conference to Support the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development will be convened at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 5 to 9 June 2017, coinciding with World Oceans Day, to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14. The Governments of Fiji and Sweden have the co-hosting responsibilities of the Conference.
More information about the conference can be found here.
Seychelles featured in The Nature Conservancy magazine. Written by Ginger Strand, the magazine article describes the Government of Seychelles’ efforts to protect 30% of its ocean and develop the Blue Economy.
Seychelles will be hosting a one-week festival in December to celebrate its rich marine heritage.
The Seychelles Ocean Festival which will be held from December 2-9, will be replacing the Sub Indian Ocean Seychelles (SUBIOS), also known as Seychelles Festival of the Sea.
The official launch of the event taking place at The Wharf Hotel and Marina on December 2, against a backdrop of the sea and the Eden Island. For more information, visit the Festival’s Facebook page.
The Seychelles government will establish up to 400,000 square kilometres of marine protected areas by 2020 as part of a comprehensive marine spatial plan for its entire exclusive economic zone. This will be achieved via a debt swap of up to $27 million with its Paris Club creditors and the government of South Africa, with the support of the Nature Conservancy and private capital investors interested in marine conservation. The announcement was made by Rebecca Loustau- Lalane, the principal secretary in the Blue Economy Department, on the main stage of the recent ‘Our Ocean conference’ at the US State Department in Washington D.C. Also attending the two-day conference was the chief executive of Nature Seychelles, Dr Nirmal Jivan Shah, who said that the main aim of the conference was to galvanise countries and institutions to do something real to protect this lifeblood of humanity.
Seychelles featured in National Geographic Magazine! From the article: “Restoration efforts are giving vulnerable native species a second chance on islands in the Indian Ocean. Privately owned St. Joseph Atoll was once commercially exploited for fish and coconuts but is now prized for its marine biodiversity and seabird colonies. In 2014 the island was made a nature reserve with a marine protected area. Its conservation is managed by the Save Our Seas Foundation. High tide in Aldabra lagoon finds green turtles grazing on sea grass. Here and on other Seychelles islands, exploitation by humans has given way to admiration and a desire to protect and restore.
Photo: Manu San Felix/National Geographic, shot during Pristine Seas Expedition to Seychelles, March 2015.
On the occasion of World Oceans Day, President James Michel has launched his fourth book, entitled ‘Rethinking The Oceans – Towards the Blue Economy,’ during an evening reception at State House today.
