Seychelles to boost bilateral cooperation in tourism with Ethiopia

An Ethiopian Airlines Dreamliner pictured at the Seychelles international airport in February, 2015. (Joe Laurence, Seychelles News Agency)

Seychelles has been invited to invest in the Ethiopian tourism industry during a bilateral meeting between the two heads of government during the sidelines of the African Union summit, a communiqué from State House said.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn issued the invitation on Wednesday during a discussion with Seychelles’ President Danny Faure, who was attending the 28th summit of the African Union (AU).

According to the communiqué, Faure said that bilateral relations between the two countries will fly to greater heights.

Seychelles has good connectivity to Ethiopia through that country’s national carrier, which flies five times weekly between Victoria, the island nation’s capital and Addis Ababa.

Speaking to the reporters in Ethiopia, Desalegn made particular reference to Seychelles’ tourism industry.

“As you may know Seychelles’ economy is mainly based on tourism, having the outstanding tourism sector development in Africa,” said Desalegn, adding that “sharing Seychelles’ tourism experience will help boost our tourism as they are now even transforming it.”

Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean with a population of 93,000, relies largely on tourism, the top contributor to its economy.

The two heads of government also spoke about the need to extend cooperation in areas like the fight against terrorism, reforms of the AU and climate change with the aim of working out commission position in international fora.

Source: Seychelles News Agency –