UNWTO welcomed delegations from 33 countries, including 22 Ministers of Tourism, two Deputy Ministers and four Ambassadors to the meeting. As the most important annual event for the region's Member States the meeting brought together international organizations and the private sector to focus on opportunities around tourism jobs and investments while also recognizing the vital need to address challenges including the climate crisis. Reflecting the high level of political support for the event, and for UNWTO's mission to guide tourism development across Africa, the meeting welcomed the attendance of the Prime Minister Republic of Mauritius Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, as well as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Housing and Land Use Planning, Minister of Tourism, Republic of Mauritius, and Vice-Chair of the UNWTO Executive Council Steven Obeegadoo. Also in attendance were the African Union Commissioner for Trade and Development, Albert Muchanga, the Secretary-General of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Chileshe Mpundu Kapwepwe, the Secretary-General of the Commonweath, Patricia Scotland KC, Special Advisor to the UNWTO Secretary-General Lai Mohammed, UN Resident Coordinator for Mauritius and Seychelles Lisa S. Singh, the Resident Representative of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Amanda Serumaga, Representative for the World Health Organization (WHO) Dr. Anne Ancia, and representatives from the African Development Bank, the World Bank, and from IFEMA and the Tui Care Foundation. Members were provided with an overview of UNWTO's achievements over the past year, with a particular focus on core priorities for tourism in Africa: Tourism Investments: UNWTO presented a new set of Investment Guidelines for Mauritius, designed to connected investors with tourism projects in the country. Gender Equality and Youth Empowerment: With tourism recognized for its unique ability to drive gender equality and empower African youth, Members were advised on the progress of the UNWTO Women in Tourism Leadership for Africa Committee, and the Organization's focus on education and training. Advocating for 'Brand Africa': Members were provided with an update on UNWTO's work to empower African tourism professionals to take charge of the narrative, including through two editions of the Brand Africa Think Tank Dialogue and plans for a UNWTO Media Training Workshop. In close collaboration with its Member States from across the region, UNWTO has also updated its Agenda for Africa – Tourism for Inclusive Growth. The revised roadmap reflects the new challenges of post-pandemic tourism and the priorities outlined by Members. Tourism addresses climate action UNWTO continues to lead tourism's shift to greater sustainability, recognizing the impact of extreme weather events, including the potential for heat waves to cut off the lifeline the sector offers for destinations worldwide. In Mauritius, Members were given an update of UNWTO's work around sustainability, most notably its leadership of the One Planet Tourism Network and the progress of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism. During her intervention on the Ministerial Panel Session: Addressing Global Challenges UN Resident Coordinator Ms. Singh emphasized opportunities in investing in climate resilience, and in vertical and horizontal diversification of tourism industries, coupling coastal leisure with inland cultural and environmental experiences. She underlined the need to better integrate the social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development in the way the tourism industry is shaped. Tourism for rural development Against the backdrop of the Regional Commission meeting, Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili enjoyed an official visit to Le Morne, recognized by UNWTO as one of its Best Tourism Villages. The Mauritian village of Old Grand Port was also awarded the accolade. Original article written by UNWTO. This version has been edited from the article first published on UNWTO website.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has taken the lead in promoting a new partnership between two influential institutions - the Food and Agricultural Research and Extension Institution (FAREI) from Mauritius, and the Seychelles Institute of Agriculture and Horticulture (SIAH) - to advance sustainable agricultural practices in their respective countries. This initiative is consistent with the Joint SDG Fund Project, which was launched in 2022 to encourage south-south cooperation between Mauritius and Seychelles in the area of climate-smart agriculture. Given their shared status as Small Island Developing States, Mauritius and Seychelles are faced with similar challenges, particularly in terms of food security. Currently, Mauritius imports a significant proportion of its food supplies (77%), while Seychelles produces only a small fraction of the agricultural produce that it consumes (2.2%). Both countries are grappling with issues related to land scarcity and climate change and must shift to more sustainable agricultural practices to enhance their food security. The Joint SDG Fund Project has provided support to Mauritius to produce bio-fertilizers from seaweed, and sustained Seychelles’ efforts to adopt climate-smart agricultural techniques such as aquaponics, hydroponics, and sheltered farming to reduce its population's reliance on imported food. Sharing knowledge for climate-smart agricultural production Following consultations on seaweed fertilisers in Seychelles last week, stakeholders from UNDP, FAREI and SIAH convened to another peer-to-peer meeting in Mauritius on April 3, 2023. The meeting explored the potential benefits of enhancing collaboration between the two island nations in the area of agriculture and discussed the possibility of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between FAREI and SIAH. The MOU, once drafted and validated, will potentially facilitate knowledge sharing between the two institutions and contribute to the development of more resilient food systems in both countries. This series of exchanges held in Mauritius over two days, included visits to FAREI's infrastructure, discussions with representatives from the Department of Agriculture of the University of Mauritius, and interactions with smart agriculture farmers, including beneficiaries of the UNDP-GEF Small Grants Programme. This initiative represents a promising stride towards achieving greater food security in both countries and underscores the power of collaboration and cooperation in advancing sustainable development. Article originally appeared on the UNDP Mauritius & Seychelles website 4 April 2023.

The World Press Freedom Index is an evaluation of the environment for journalism in 180 countries and territories compiled by the international NGO Reporters without Borders (RSF). Seychelles placed 34th this year. The Index recognised  "The environment tends to favour the practice of journalism" and that the country is rare in Africa with the majority of journalists being women. The report also shined the light on the global challenge of disinformation campaigns bolstered by artificial intelligence technology weakening journalism and undermining the right to information.  On this World Press Freedom Day, the UN in Seychelles shares the message from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.  ******START****** For three decades, on World Press Freedom Day, the international community has celebrated the work of journalists and media workers.   This day highlights a basic truth: all our freedom depends on press freedom.   Freedom of the press is the foundation of democracy and justice. It gives all of us the facts we need to shape opinions and speak truth to power. And as this year’s theme reminds us, press freedom represents the very lifeblood of human rights.   But in every corner of the world, freedom of the press is under attack.    Truth is threatened by disinformation and hate speech seeking to blur the lines between fact and fiction, between science and conspiracy.     The increased concentration of the media industry into the hands of a few, the financial collapse of scores of independent news organizations, and an increase of national laws and regulations that stifle journalists are further expanding censorship and threatening freedom of expression.       Meanwhile, journalists and media workers are directly targeted on and offline as they carry out their vital work. They are routinely harassed, intimidated, detained and imprisoned.     At least 67 media workers were killed in 2022 — an unbelievable 50 per cent increase over the previous year. Nearly three quarters of women journalists have experienced violence online, and one in four have been threatened physically.   Ten years ago, the United Nations established a Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists to protect media workers and end impunity for crimes committed against them.    On this and every World Press Freedom Day, the world must speak with one voice.   Stop the threats and attacks.   Stop detaining and imprisoning journalists for doing their jobs.   Stop the lies and disinformation.   Stop targeting truth and truth-tellers.     As journalists stand up for truth, the world stands with them. ****** END ***** For more information: https://www.unesco.org/en/days/press-freedom and 2023 World Press Freedom Index – journalism threatened by fake content industry | RSF

Over the past 6 months, the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) for Seychelles and the Government of the Republic of Seychelles have been collaborating to design a new strategic partnership document. The United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF 2024-2028) will be co-owned and co-signed by the UN and government and aligned to the National Development Plans and priorities. This strategic document will provide the overall strategy and plan to contribute towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).   One of the principal events associated with UNSDCF formulation is a two-day Strategic Prioritization Retreat (SPR).  The SPR co-hosted by the UNCT and the Government of Seychelles was held on 7-8 March 2023 at the Savoy Hotel, Beau Vallon, Seychelles. The purpose of the SPR was to agree and further refine with the government and other key stakeholders the priority areas shaping the future cooperation framework. An important milestone event the SPR engagement was built on themes and focus areas for UN collaboration arising from the independent evaluation of the existing Strategic Partnership Framework (SPR) (2018-2023), UN Common Country Analysis (CCA), and consultations with government, civil society, academia, and private sector. The SPR brought a cross-section of around 50 development partners, including ministers, other government officials, and the United Nations Development System to think strategically about risks and how to address risks and vulnerabilities within the unique context of the country. With less than ten years left to achieve the SDGs, the UNCT for Seychelles aims to design a Cooperation Framework in partnership with the government that is strategic, succinct, adaptable, and results-oriented and which integrates Leave No One Behind (LNOB) as the core unifying principle.   In her opening remarks, the UN Resident Coordinator Ms. Lisa Simrique Singh commended the government for the significant progress that Seychelles has made in its development trajectory. She reminded participants that with only 7 years to go before the 2030 Agenda all partners need to come together to accelerate progress towards the SDGs. As such the Resident Coordinator stressed the importance of focussed, systemic efforts on the part of the UN.  She also spoke of multiple overlapping challenges and risks posing challenges for international development and economic systems, and the need to advance resilient solutions.    In his keynote address, the Minister for Finance, Planning and Trade Mr. Naadir Hassan outlined the current status of the National Plan which had been framed based on a ‘rethink and reform agenda for results’ emerging out of the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. The Minister called on the UN joint programmes to adopt horizontal cross-sectoral solutions alongside SDG financing to respond to resourcing gaps. The Minister also requested the UN to leverage its access to expertise and partnerships, including the private sector for integrated development solutions.                  To kickstart the exploration of challenges and opportunities a high-level panel discussion was moderated by Ms. Amanda Serumaga, UNDP Resident Representative, on behalf of the UNCT. Panellists comprised: Hon. Mr Naadir Hassan, Minister for Finance, National Planning & Trade Ms Aissatou Diallo, Resident Representative of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Ms Joelle Perreau, Vice Chancellor, University of Seychelles Mr Ashraf El Nour, Regional Director, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) Mr Charles Boliko, Regional Director, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)   Dialogue centred on food systems and food sovereignty, anticipating the future human capital (educational and skills) needs of a transformed economy, and the full integration of climate adaptation and the significant associated costs across all sectors. The importance of readily accessible investment climate and SDG finance and digitization featured prominently, alongside the imperative role of the private sector, as well as capacity building for ensuring the means of implementation. During the afternoon of day one, and the morning of day two, a series of group foresight exercises were held to encourage the UN and government participants to think strategically to jointly identify the key challenges and priorities to address in support of the SDGs and national development priorities. Based on the participants’ inputs from the SPR outcomes and inter-agency outputs will be reviewed to ensure a high-quality, risk-informed strategic document for Seychelles. The draft cooperation framework will be shared for validation in April.   In closing the SPR, the UN Resident Coordinator expressed gratitude to the government and UN colleagues for thinking and collaborating strategically. She commented on the requirement for robust partnerships to address the emergent priority areas. Ms. Singh emphasised the consensus on foresight and the portfolio approach, and the important discussions which had taken place around sustainable capacity building throughout all pillars. The Resident Coordinator also highlighted there are good opportunities for regional and South-South cooperation.   Minister Hassan in his closing remarks echoed Seychelle’s complex, unique challenges, and to move beyond labels e.g. high-income countries. He highlighted that the country’s reliance on imports leaves it highly vulnerable, weakened by the pandemic and war in Ukraine. As such he recognized that this necessitates innovation and new ways of thinking, including around digitalisation and financing. The Minister repeated his request for strong partnerships and greater synergies and coordination between UN agencies and thanked the participants for their presence and contributions.