"India can help us with health, education and cost of living", says Seychelles President Patrick Herminie

Victoria [Seychelles], October 27 : Seychelles President Patrick Herminie has said his country is working closely with India to deepen cooperation in key areas such as health, education, defence, and trade, sectors that directly affect the lives of the Seychellois people.

Speaking toduring Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan's two-day visit to Seychelles, President Herminie said discussions with Indian authorities have already begun to find ways for India to support Seychelles in tackling immediate challenges.

"We've already had some preliminary discussions with the Indian authorities about how best India can help us to have an immediate impact on our population, with health, with education, and with the cost of living. We're working on a strategy that will ensure that these things are immediately effective here in the Seychelles," Herminie said.

He added that India has been a key partner in strengthening defence and maritime security cooperation between the two countries.

"We have the defence, the maritime security agreement with India, because we share one ocean. And India has been instrumental in training our officers. In fact, as you speak, we have a lot of military officers in India being trained," he said.

Next year, India and Seychelles will complete 50 years of diplomatic relations. Reflecting on the long-standing bond, President Herminie said the two countries share deep ties built on trust and shared values.

He said, "We expect India to help us in our socio-economic development. Trade will be very important. As it is, we already trade a lot with India because many of the merchants in Seychelles are Indians. Helping us with the development of certain key sectors from agriculture to education to health will be vital. We will not depend, but we will ask for the support of India. I foresee a future where the two countries will be working very closely together, in mutual respect and a win-win situation. With India being the larger of the two nations, we are confident that we will gain from their expertise through knowledge transfer and capacity building."

On plan and vision for the nation, Patrick Herminie said, "... The biggest problem we currently face is heroin addiction among our youth, affecting nearly 10% of them. It poses an existential threat to our country. We are struggling with demand reduction, and at present, we have no rehabilitation programmes in place... We are working to improve health, education, and living standards, while also addressing housing shortages. Our goal is to transform Seychelles over the next five years, with a strong focus on science, technology, and artificial intelligence."

Earlier on Monday, Vice-President CP Radhakrishnan met President Herminie at the State House, where he conveyed greetings from the Government and people of India and wished him success for his tenure.

"Both sides discussed ways to strengthen the India-Seychelles bilateral partnership and reaffirmed a shared vision for peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indian Ocean Region and the Global South," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.

The meeting followed Radhakrishnan's attendance at Herminie's swearing-in ceremony as President of Seychelles on Sunday.

Earlier, Indian High Commissioner to Seychelles Rohit Rathish said the visit also aims to explore new areas of collaboration, including artificial intelligence, in line with Seychelles' priorities as a small island developing state. "In the times to come, we will have new signature projects and initiatives being announced by both sides to strengthen our bilateral partnership," he told ANI.

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