Consultancy to develop contingency plan for tourism sector |14 November 2011

Since the tourism sector is an important and widespread sector which has developed extensive infrastructure in the economy of Seychelles, it is essential that all reasonable contingency measures are undertaken to ensure the safety of tourists and tourism workers alike in the event of a disaster.

It is for this reason that the Division of Risk and Disaster Management (DRDM) within the Environment Department of Seychelles is working on the development of a National Tourism Disaster Contingency Plan that integrates Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) at the systemic and institutional levels of the sector.

The consultant for this ‘Seychelles National  Disaster Preparedness and Response’ World Bank Project activity, Dr. Marie-Therese Purvis, gave impetus to the groundwork for this plan by undertaking disaster preparedness situation analysis in selectively large and small tourism operations on Praslin and La Digue.

The preparation of this Plan includes coordinating with various national government agencies, local government units, and the private sector to identify and resolve issues, develop strategic directions and sectorial priorities, paying particular attention to the main risk that the tourism residential establishments are vulnerable to, such as tsunamis, flooding, landslides and fires as well as safety at the beaches just to name a few hazards.

Contributed