Special Country Report on Seychelles in High Life magazine of British Airwayspage1image
Almasalla, ATP News- So much more than sun, sea, and sand. Six years of reforms have made this island nation an investment paradise with a diversifying economy.
Seychelles is perhaps best known as the ultimate get-away-from-it-all luxury the islands “Providing accommodation infrastructure for growing visitor numbers while balancing environmental concerns…the holiday destination is blessed with palm fringed beaches lapped by the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean.” says
But that’s an image Alain St.Ange, the Tourism and Culture Minister of the Seychelles says doesn’t really do the island nation justice: “What makes us different is our culture, which is a unique blend of the best of France, Africa, Britain, India, and China.” Mr St Ange believes that visitors deserve to get to know the islands’ unique Creole culture: “The question is: what does the discerning traveller want?
To lie on the beach all day, or do they want more than that? It’s quite clear they want a bit more to go home with, and this is culture: to enjoy the food, the music, the dancing and to meet the people; this is what gives you the feeling you have got to know the country.”
In this context, Mr St.Ange is also working to include Seychelles as part of an overall African tourism brand that would increase the continent’s share of visitors, which currently stands at around 5 per cent of the global total.
Seychelles was behind the initiative to include a tourism department within the African Union (AU). “We are part of Africa and we need to develop that. There is no point in us competing with other African nations.
Visitors need to be able to enjoy what main-land Africa has to offer, and then enjoy our islands.” He says that at the AU’s upcoming annual meeting, a single continent-wide visa is to be discussed.
Tourism, which employs around 40 per cent of the workforce, contributes a quarter of GDP the Country Report states.
This report is now out and sits on every British Airways flight and in all their lounges world wide touching some 3.5 million readers.
Click open the report and read Seychelles in this High Life magazine of British Airways.
