Global Courant 2023-05-14 17:18:20
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During his official visit to the Seychelles, the Minister of Foreign, European Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Malta, the Honorable Dr. Ian Borg, met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Mr. Sylvestre Radegonde, to set the tone for the Seychelles and Malta will cooperate in key sectors.
During talks on Friday 12 May 2023 at Maison Quéau de Quinssy, the two ministers agreed that while Malta has been an essential partner of Seychelles for capacity building in the education and maritime security sectors, there are opportunities to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
Minister Radegonde expressed Seychelles’ appreciation to the Maltese Government for the support it has provided over the years. , renewable energy, fisheries and blue economy and exchange of best practices and joint capacity building initiatives”,
The Minister stressed that maritime security is important to the country and “Seychelles appreciate the support of EUNAVFOR Operation ATALANTA and recognize Malta’s contributions to the EUNAVFOR operation”. The European Union’s proposal to extend the mandate of EUNAVFOR Operation ATALANTA to IUU fishing, drug and arms trafficking is welcomed by the Seychelles as it will contribute to the fight against illicit drug trafficking, which is of major concern.
Both sides agreed that maritime crimes could be tackled through capacity building exercises, intelligence sharing and pooling of resources to strengthen peace and security in the Western Indian Ocean.
Minister Radegonde stressed that the signing of two memoranda of understanding on health cooperation and the establishment of a joint bilateral cooperation committee “will form the basis for deep cooperation” in areas that are priorities for the country.
“There are many lawyers and accountants in Malta who would be interested in offering their expertise to the Seychelles. In addition, artificial intelligence is blocking change, and the digital economy is expanding rapidly and we can explore opportunities in this area,” said Minister Borg. .
Other topics discussed included the vulnerability of small island developing states to the effects of climate change, which Malta understands as it also experiences the effects of sea level rise. Minister Radegonde thanked Malta for its climate change advocacy and sought support for the adoption of a Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) for the Seychelles to access concessional finance to mitigate such impacts.
Also present at the meeting were the Minister of Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry, Ms Devika Vidot, Minister of Education, Dr Justin Valentin, Chief Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Vivianne Fock Tave, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Malta to the African Union, HE Mr. Ronald Micallef, Acting Chief Secretary for Health, Dr. Susan Fock Tave and senior officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Tourism.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Tourism – Department of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Seychelles.
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