Victoria [Seychelles], June 28 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday reaffirmed India’s commitment to further strengthening its long-standing development partnership with Seychelles while expanding bilateral cooperation across strategic, economic and high-technology sectors.
Addressing a joint press meet with Seychelles President Wavel Ramkalawan Herminie, PM Modi highlighted the announcement of India’s Special Economic Package (SEP) worth USD 175 million, which was announced during President Herminie’s visit to India earlier this year.
He described development partnership as the “defining feature” of India-Seychelles bilateral relations and reiterated that India’s approach remains focused on the priorities and aspirations of its partner countries.
“Development partnership has been a defining feature of our relationship. India always moves forward by keeping the priorities, needs, and aspirations of the partner nation at the center. During the President’s visit to India, we announced a special economic package of $175 million. Under this initiative, work is being carried out in sectors such as social housing, transport, skill development, food security, education, and defense,” he said.
Regarding the virtual groundbreaking for a new Professional and Technical Centre in Seychelles, Prime Minister Modi expressed his belief that this centre will significantly elevate the employability, skills, and self-confidence of the youth of the East African island nation.
“Supporting human resource development in Seychelles has been a special priority for India. I am pleased that we are contributing to the training of Seychelles’ civil servants. Today, the virtual groundbreaking ceremony for the Professional and Technical Center is also taking place. We believe that this center will elevate the skills, employability, and self-confidence of the youth of Seychelles to new heights in the future,” he affirmed.
Highlighting the enduring cooperation between the two countries in the health sector, PM Modi said the partnership had stood “the test of time,” recalling India’s support through vaccine supplies during the COVID-19 pandemic. To further this cooperation, he also announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the ‘Jan Aushadhi’ initiative, which aims to make quality and affordable medicines accessible to the people of Seychelles.
“Our partnership in the health sector has stood the test of time. We fulfilled our obligations as a friend by supplying vaccines during the challenging times of the COVID-19 pandemic. The MoU signed today regarding ‘Jan Aushadhi’ will help provide quality and affordable medicines to the people of Seychelles. We will continue our efforts to further strengthen medical care in Seychelles through capacity building and training,” he stated.
Strategic cooperation remains a cornerstone of the two nations’ bilateral relationship, with Prime Minister Modi affirming that the defence and security of India and Seychelles are “inextricably linked.” He affirmed that the bilateral agenda is also expanding to various sectors, including energy and climate action, Blue Economy, and space.
“Our cooperation in the fields of energy and climate action is also steadily growing. We will continue to collaborate in new areas of clean energy, including green hydrogen. The Blue Economy is a natural and strategic area of our relationship. We will share India’s expertise in ocean observation, marine science, and coastal management with Seychelles,” he said.
“We are moving forward together in the space sector; I am pleased that an MoU has been signed between the two sides on this subject today. We believe that the defence and security of India and Seychelles are inextricably linked, and we will continue our close cooperation in this regard,” he added.
PM Modi also highlighted the growing importance of digital connectivity in strengthening bilateral engagement and welcomed the signing of an MoU for the implementation of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in Seychelles.
“Efforts will also be made to enhance connectivity between India and Seychelles; this will not only boost our trade but also strengthen ties with East Africa and the Indian Ocean region. We believe that digital technology is an effective means to bridge the distance between our two countries. We will share India’s successful experiences in digital public infrastructure with Seychelles, and I am pleased that an MoU is being signed today to implement UPI in Seychelles,” he added
PM Modi concluded by reaffirming that India will continue its efforts to bolster medical care in Seychelles through capacity building and training, while continuing to collaborate across these diverse strategic fields.
Prime Minister Modi is on a three-day State Visit to Seychelles from June 27 to June 29 at the invitation of President Herminie. (ANI)
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