Courtesy call – Swedish Ambassador to the Designated Minister

The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden to the Republic of Seychelles H.E, Mrs Caroline Vicini, conducted a courtesy call on the Designated Minister and the Minister for Fisheries and the Blue Economy, Mr Jean-Francois Ferrari, this morning (Monday 11th May, 2021) at the Ministry.

Discussions between the newly accredited Swedish Ambassador and the Designated Minister centred primarily around the development of the Aquaculture sector in the Seychelles and efforts being made by the government to launch this sector to both local and foreign investors.

Sweden is regarded as a leader in the Aquaculture sector across Europe which according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) accounts to 6% in the total fish production of the country. Rainbow trout is the most important species that is farmed in Sweden, alongside chars, blue mussels, oysters and crayfish.

Minister Ferrari informed the ambassador that the Aquaculture regulations for Seychelles will be finalised in the third quarter of the year, thereafter the country will be counting on the technical expertise of Sweden in research and development capabilities to bring this sub-sector to the next level.

Discussions also revolved around new business opportunities such as the cultivation of algae to encourage foreign direct investments in the Seychelles’ biotechnology, biomedical and cosmetics industry for the diversification of the blue economy sector.

Ambassador Vicini on her part, congratulated the Seychelles’ government on being the first country to publish its Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI) report and for continuous efforts in addressing fishing challenges especially with regards to the management of fish stocks and the balance between conservation and development.

To achieve this objective, Minister Ferrari stated that there needs to be efficient exchange of information between Sri Lanka and Seychelles which can be facilitated with data collected from the Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). The exchange of information can ensure that both countries are aware of movements of their fishing vessels at all times.

This partnership will enable Seychelles and Sri Lanka to continue to be at the forefront in fisheries transparency and ensure compliance with international obligations such as those set by OECD.

Minister Ferrari also made a proposal that the CINEC management offers more fisheries related courses with a particular focus on modern fishing technologies both at the Seychelles Maritime Academy (SMA) as well as the CINEC campus in Colombo.

This is to encourage more Seychellois youths to join the fisheries sector in Seychelles not just as fishermen, but to take hold of equally important career opportunities in the fisheries value chain.