Local hotel school boosts ties with Shanghai institute |28 January 2013

They could also go on work attachments lasting from one to three months, and as part of the exchange programme, students from that institute will be able to come to Seychelles to do the same in our tourism industry.

The agreement was signed by STA principal Flavien Joubert and the SIT president Yang Weiwu at the headquarters of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture at the National Cultural Centre.

This was in the presence of the Minister for Tourism and Culture Alain St Ange, his principal secretary for tourism Sherin Renaud, chief executive of the Seychelles Tourism Board Elsia Grandcourt, and other officials from his ministry.

Speaking to Seychelles Nation later, Mr Joubert said the agreement also caters for further training for the STA lecturers.

“We will be able to send our lecturers to Shanghai to follow short training courses, even advanced training. We are also set to benefit from SIT lecturers coming to Seychelles to deliver advanced courses to our lecturers here,” he said.

Students from all courses at the academy will get equal opportunities to attend internship at the SIT.

Minister St Ange said he has personally been to Shanghai and has seen the strength of the city in the tourism industry.

“We hope that the agreement is a win-win situation and for the STA it is a new door opened for our students. This agreement comes at an opportune time as we re-build our tourism academy and leave no stones unturned in our drive to offer the best possible training to the young Seychellois who will enter the tourism industry,” he said.

Mr Joubert said a delegation of STA and Ministry of Tourism officials have just returned to the country from a mission in Oman, where they had signed a memorandum of understanding similar to this one.

“Although not a lot of people know that much about the Oman tourism industry, it is a place of five to six-star hotels, and we will certainly gain to have our students and lecturers go on training there,” he said.

The STA has such memorandum of understanding with several countries, which include Germany, Ireland, Mauritius, mainland France, India and Singapore.