By Alain St.Ange of SAINT ANGE CONSULTANCY
The Editorial this week highlights:- a. International Creole Day – 28th October. b. Didier Robert, Regional President of Reunion opens an economic office of Reunion in Seychelles. c. Seychelles will prioritise local tourism players to stimulate growth? . d. Sri Lanka’s nominated as the Top Country for 2019 for travel by Lonely Planet – other Indian Ocean islands asking what they did wrong. e. Seychelles loses a culture pioneer ‘the African man in the colourful attire’.
Stand alone articles this week:-
1. Dr. Taleb Rifai invites to International Tourism and Investment Conference.
2. African Tourism Board at WTM in London next week.
3. International Travel Crisis Management Summit – Thursday 8th November 2018.
4. Didier Robert, Regional President of Reunion welcomed at State House by President Danny Faure of Seychelles .
5. New CEO at Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority & New PS for Civil Aviation, Ports & Marine.
6. La Digue Offshore Fishing Competition 2018.
7. Nature Seychelles’ Conservation Boot Camp entices participants from 19 countries.
8. Cousine Island – The first of many nesting hawksbill turtles arrive.
9. Oil’s new frontier? The Seychelles plans to fast-track drilling despite environmental concerns.
10. Ziad Mekdachi, the Seychelles gentle giant making Seychelles proud.
11. Sri Lanka ranked top country for travel in 2019 by Lonely Planet.
12. Tourism grows in the Kenyan coast.
13. “Costa Victoria” launches Cruise Ship season for Mauritius & Coquille Bonheur.
14. Seychelles Tourism Board Dubai Office hosted its third Edition of GCC Roadshow
15. International Newswires continue to republish our Report.
View or share it at: https://mailchi.mp/saintange/saint-ange-tourism-report-edition-43-of-monday-29th-october-2018
International Creole Day – 28th October
Sunday the 28th October saw the World of Creoles celebrate their International Creole Day. From the Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands, to the Caribbean and even to New Orleans in Louisiana USA and Cabo Verde it is all proud Creoles who has the right to celebrate their identity and culture.
A question on this historic Creole Day is “Where does the International Creole Day come from?” An article posted by ARCHIPEL MEDIA on SEPTEMBER 30, 2017 October 28th: INTERNATIONAL CREOLE DAY «BANNZIL KREYOL» says it all.
In 1979, an international conference of Creole studies bringing together linguists from around the world took place in Seychelles. Subsequently, in 1981, scientists whose mother tongue was Creole began to ask questions about methods that could promote the Creole language, after a symposium organized by the International Committee of Creole Studies, where the theme of reflection was: “Creole, creoles, continuity and creativity in the Creole world.
” On October 28, 1981, at the third conference, at the Old Port in Saint Lucia, the Creole speakers decided to join together to create a movement that took the name of: BANNZIL KREYOL. And it was decided to hold October 28 because this date had previously been retained by the Dominicans to celebrate a “Creole Day”.
In 1982 the Seychelles government organized a Creole week, the same year the movement BANNZIL KREYOL wrote its founding texts in a quarterly bulletin. October 28, 1983 was the first day of BANNZIL KREYOL.
The first “International Creole Day” was celebrated in 1983, in a rather haphazard way. However, from year to year, the implementation of this day has improved and is, in some countries, the occasion of quite significant and interesting events. Since then, the day of October 28 is celebrated in all the countries of the Creole world. Many countries today are celebrating this day for a week, highlighting the highlight of the day on October 28th.
Seychelles is currently in the middle of its Festival Kreol 2018, a celebration that sits annually on the island’s calendar of National Events. Last Saturday it staged its Laserenad (Festival Parade) in Victoria, an event that continues to be the highlight of the Festival.
Next on the calendar of Creole Festivals are the ones of Mauritius, Rodrigues and Reunion
Didier Robert, Regional President of Reunion opens an economic office of Reunion in Seychelles
Reunion Island is the only Indian Ocean Island opening economic offices in Member States of their Vanilla Islands Grouping. President Didier Robert, the Regional President of Reunion must be congratulated for working hard to open doors for the business community of Reunion and in so doing create employment for the Reunionais. This drive by Didier Robert is an example because Reunion products, their know how and also the promotion of Reunion Island as a tourism destination in its own right cannot just happen by itself. It is such endeavours where the island’s presence is seen and remains visible that Reunion can be relevant.
Reunion Island has inaugurated its regional antenna office of Seychelles, in Victoria. This is the fourth antenna office in the Indian Ocean which ensures a presence of Reunion in the countries of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC).
The Réunion Region office is located in an office on the third floor of the Espace Building in Ile du Port. Its role remains to facilitate the links between the Reunionais companies and the Seychellois actors, either in the public or private sector.
The inauguration of the Seychelles office took place in the presence of Mr Vincent Meriton, Vice-President of the Republic of Seychelles, President Didier Robert, Regional President of the Réunion, and Mr Lionel Majesté-Larrouy, Ambassador of France to Seychelles. Also present were Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Barry Faure, ministers and members of the diplomatic corps.
The installation of this antenna Réunion Region in Seychelles is within the framework of a program of European territorial cooperation – INTERREG V Indian Ocean. Among the objectives, the antenna will host Reunionais companies on a prospecting mission and who wish to set up or form partnerships in Seychelles. With the opening of its antenna in Seychelles, the community now covers the entire Indian Ocean Commission, because similar antennas were established in Madagascar, in Mauritius and in the Comoros.
Seychelles will prioritise local tourism players to stimulate growth?
Seychellois businesses in the field of tourism have been urging the Government of the Seychelles to efficiently identify and harness the tourism resources of the islands to create sustainable development for Seychelles. This call is not new, but recently the tourism industry players have been meeting leaders to put their case on the need to consolidate tourism, the industry that remains the pillar of the Seychelles economy.
Meetings with VP Meriton by some, and with Heads of Government Authorities by others and even going as far as having recourse to the Judiciary by a company are all taking place with the aim of stimulating growth in the Seychelles Tourism Industry instead of stifling the industry that Seychelles and the Seychellois people so depend on.
The 5-Room limit set for La Digue some years ago is being questioned as it is seen as an “economic strangulation” of establishments. The vertical integration regulation is seen as the blow now referred to as the “coup de grace” Seychellois entrepreneurs did not need over and above continuing rising costs in operation, shortage of staff and the bureaucracy that it entails to recruit foreign workers (one establishment citing up to a three months waiting period), and the waiting time for necessary authorisations for new developments even when the Authorities in Seychelles know that they should be on their knees to push for more local investments and also FDIs (Foreign Direct Investments).
Seychellois entrepreneurs in tourism such as Joe Albert and his son Guillaume, Kathy Mason and her son Alan, Mary Geers, Guy Savy of Bird Island, Gilbert Frichot and his partner Corola among others seem to have made the decision to task themselves with the commitment to continue to work for Seychelles to help prioritise the development of tourism in all its facets.
In Seychelles today abandoned and untapped tourist sites, properties and facilities are not improving the different villages’ economy and help Seychellois build a future for themselves and grow the country’s economy. Other serious investments and investors in the Seychelles such as the Raffles Seychelles of Praslin, H-Hotel of Beau Vallon Mahe, Club Liberte Casino at Four Seasons Seychelles and Avani Seychelles Barbarons Resorts and Spa among others are seen as examples of marrying foreign participation in an industry that is the pillar of a country’s economy.
They are working hard and are being innovative and pro-active, but know that Seychelles has but one tourism industry and it is together (private & public sector) that the islands will make the difference in the competitive world of tourism.
I was recently speaking within an interview on “improving facilities, opening tourism opportunities & relooking at the word facilitator when the island’s government is involved to ensure a better tourism management approach” and can say that I appreciate the seriousness of the situation on hand in Seychelles.
The tourism industry players ought never to be quite happy with the obstacles, with the lack of understanding by the facilitators, with limited infrastructure and below accepted level of services coming with today’s over the top rates, fees and licenses. The tourism industry players and their staff need to sit together to propose bold making and sound policy framework which will continue to make tourism THE essential component of the Seychelles development agenda.
Advocating a solid vibrant policy framework to reenergise the sector as mandated by the people who are always the first to feel the effects of any downward trend in the island’s tourism industry. It is this that is now needed by Seychelles for the development, management, regulation and marketing of sustainable tourism and tourism related services and for connected services.
Praslin and La Digue Islands has a need to seek to mobilise revenue collected by the state on their island’s Parks and Gardens to implement their development agenda. It is important they find innovative methods to be part of and to then fully exploit their island treasured resources to assist development of their island by their island. The same can be said for other business groups and associations. in the different parts of the main islands of Mahe.
It is time to challenge stakeholders in the tourism industry especially, and their district business committees to look to work more together to accomplish more to greatly help raise their island visibility and make the islands more relevant as tourism destinations. In so doing see the reflection of the contribution of their sector to national development will be better recognised.
Sri Lanka’s nominated as the Top Country for 2019 for travel by Lonely Planet – other Indian Ocean islands asking what they did wrong
Tourism Destinations must be questioning where they went wrong, what they did not do or even what they could have done better over and above the norm to be seen for them to remain relevant. Investing is visibility drives has brought the gold medal for Sri Lanka and they have today become more relevant than they have ever been.
Sri Lanka’s nomination as the Top Country for 2019 for travel by Lonely Planet is the trophy they got for having a proactive visibility drive that made them relevant. There is no magic solution for earning recognition apart from work the visibility of the destination strategy to ensure you are always ahead of the pack.
The need to find ways and means to remain seen in tourism target markets will always continue to bring success. Sri Lanka’s nomination as the Top Country for 2019 for travel by Lonely Planet is today a big plus for their tourism industry, and the other islands in the Indian Ocean must now be asking themselves what it is they not do, or what it is that they did wrong. Be seen and be relevant is and will remain key to success.
Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel lists the top 10 countries, cities and regions alongside other travel experiences for the year ahead, ranked by the staff of Lonely Planet, including editors and contributors from around the world. G
ermany is rated second in the countries list, with a nod to the centenary of Bauhaus next year, and Zimbabwe – where tourists are starting to return after the resignation of Robert Mugabe – comes in third.
In fifth position is Kyrgyzstan, which has 2,700km of newly-marked trekking routes. Copenhagen, Shenzhen in China and Nova Sad in Serbia were named as the best cities to travel to in 2019, while top trends include dark-skies tourism (with an increase in people stargazing and solar eclipse trips) and electric road trips, thanks to a rise in the number of car-rental companies offering alternatives to petrol and diesel vehicles.
Seychelles loses a culture pioneer ‘the African man in the colourful attire’
A couple of months ago I gave a ride to Achille Luc as I left Baie Lazare, and on the way we enjoyed a rare opportunity to discuss culture and tradition with a man who lives it and above all with a man who believes in it. On the way we stopped at Marc Marengo Flower Garden “Kot Manya” to pick up some plants and with Marc, over a jug of fresh lime juice we again discussed Seychelles and the cultural heritage of our islands. In my years as the Seychelles Minister responsible for Culture I saw and worked a lot alongside Achille Luc especially when the annual FetAfrik was being organised. Today we are sad to report on Achille Luc’s passing. It is a big loss for Seychelles.
His African way of dressing has surely attracted the attention of many, let alone his dreadlocked hair and his strong advocacy for the African culture, along with his passion for conservation. Achille ‘Kwame’ Luc of Baie Lazare has been a popular figure in Seychelles, both as a talented musician and also as an ambassador for human rights. ‘Kwame’, as he was more affectionately known, is no longer. The charismatic figure left us yesterday following a short illness.
Born on January 6, 1963, ‘Kwame’ has done extensive work with non-governmental organisations both locally and internationally to develop and carry out action plans against racial discrimination, intolerance and xenophobia. He was also actively involved in conservation work and was a pioneer in the field of environment protection.
Co-founder and first chairman of the African Friendship Association (Afa), ‘Kwame’ has represented the country at many international forums, including a United Nations workshop on discrimination in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2011 where some 20 African states were represented. His contribution to the conference coincided with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination celebrated on March 21. “We cannot pretend that discrimination and domestic violence for both genders do not deserve to be prioritised in Seychelles, rather I believe that they have a huge impact on our society and the negative influences and happenings today,” said ‘Kwame’ in one of his many interviews with Seychelles NATION.
He noted that discrimination takes many forms and is not always so obvious; examples include the difficulties that might be met by a recently-released prisoner, people with disabilities, someone with dreadlocks, and someone with Aids, no matter how good his or her qualifications are.
“Many people in Seychelles suffer discrimination, although cases are not always made known and some even qualify as human rights abuse cases,” he added. Through Afa, ‘Kwame’ has helped to host exhibitions on great African personalities and Seychellois with African diaspora. It was the success of the activities organised by Afa that brought recognition from the Ministry of Culture at that time, and led to them joining forces and hosting what is known today as ‘FetAfrik’ – the annual event in May showcasing African culture and tradition.
‘Kwame’ also gave talks in schools on African perspectives, teaching percussion, and also took part in exchange programmes with the crew on board the ‘Peace Boat’ during its regular visits. He was also a keen promoter for the protection of the environment and often took parties of tourists on nature trails. Music found him since he grew up in a family of musicians. With the influence of the Rastafarian movement, ‘Kwame’ began to follow Reggae stars like Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. A move which persuaded him that Africa was the crib of civilisation.
On the local music scene, ‘Kwame’ is well known to have been a member and the lead guitarist of local group called Bwa Gayak, led by well-known singer and song-writer Patrick Victor. On the group’s album entitled ‘Patrick Victor & Bwa Gayak’ released in the early 90s , ‘Kwame’ had a piece called ‘We came from Africa’ which showcased his strong attachment to the motherland. The departure of ‘Kwame’ will surely leave a void, especially in the artistic, educational and conservation areas.
“I am just happy to be different and my beautiful, colourful attire is just part of me,” he once said and now reported in the Nation newspaper of Seychelles.
It is important to again today acknowledge all who are diligently re-posting the Saint Ange Tourism Report weekly. Our Report ranges far and wide, from Australia to the Americas, from the Indian Ocean Vanilla islands to Africa & Asian and Greater Europe, with your continued support, which is greatly appreciated. You are helping us to grow from strength to strength with each new Edition.
Enjoy the read,
Alain St.Ange
Saint Ange Consultancy
Dr. Taleb Rifai invites to International Tourism and Investment Conference
Africa is on the mind of two events on the sideline of the upcoming World Travel Market in London next month.
Dr. Taleb Rifai, Chairman of ITIC Advisory Board and Former Secretary-General, UNWTO invites tourism players to a special launch event of the International Tourism and Investment Conference (ITIC) and its Tourism Investment Platform. It will be held in London on Friday, 02 November 2018 at the InterContinental Park Lane, Mayfair, from 17:00 – 20:30. Anita Mendiratta, Founder & CEO of Cachet Consulting & Lead Consultant for CNN will be the moderator.
The African Tourism Board Initiative is on its part inviting their supporters and anyone interesting in bringing African Tourism together to their soft launch event sponsored by Reed Exhibition on Monday, 05 November 2018 at Excel London during the World Travel Market in North Gallery Room 4, 14.00h.
Juergen Steinmetz, publisher of eTurboNews and Chairman of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners will be the master of ceremony for the African Tourism Board Initiative event.
ITIC is designed to serve as a unique global investment platform that will bring together Investors, Private Equity Firms, Bankers, Family Offices, Law firms, Technology Expert alongside Tourism Policy Makers and Ministers, Experts, CEOs of public and private, sector tourism entities as one tourism-focused business community to unlock opportunities for tourism countries strongly reliant on tourism as a foundation for national growth and development.
The Launch Event for ITIC will feature a high-level, professionally facilitated Panel Discussion – Invest Tourism, featuring carefully selected international leaders in tourism and investment with rich insight into opportunities for tourism and investment partnership.
Supporters & Sponsors:
* African Tourism Board
* Intercontinental London
* Daiichi
* WTTC
* Hyda & Reed
* SKAL
Media Partners:
* eTurboNews
* Jacobs Media Group
* TravelWeekly
* American Banker
* African Business
* New African
* New African Woman
Panelists
▪ Honorable Najib Balala, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife-Kenya
▪ Honourable Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism-Jamaica
▪ Mr. Gerald Lawless, Former President and CEO of the Jumeirah Group
▪ Mr. Saleh Said, Managing Director of Pennyroyal Ltd, promoter of a tourism village in Zanzibar
Source:- World Tourism Wire
