‘Seychelles should be justifiably proud of Air Seychelles’ |22 June 2015
“The people of Seychelles can be justifiably proud of Air Seychelles, its growth and achievements and the crucial contribution that it is making every day to the economy of Seychelles through facilitating growth in our tourism and trade,” Foreign Affairs and Transport Minister Joel Morgan has said.
Minister Morgan, who is also the chairman of Air Seychelles, was speaking to the media after the national airline had captured three prestigious awards on Saturday night during the 22nd World Travel Awards Africa & Indian Ocean gala ceremony at the Kempinski Seychelles Resort, Baie Lazare.
He congratulated the Air Seychelles team for winning three of the highest accolades at the Indian Ocean World Travel Awards and further strengthening the reputation of Air Seychelles as a leading airline.
“It is fitting that this year the award ceremony was held in Seychelles and that in less than two weeks on July 1, our flag-carrier will further promote our beautiful archipelago as it commences a three-times-a-week nonstop Paris service,” he added.
Air Seychelles’ chief executive Manoj Papa said: “Winning three world travel awards is a proud moment for Air Seychelles and validates that the business model is working and the investment in the airline is sound. By focusing on people, product and partnerships we are overcoming the challenges faced by the airline in the past few years.
“Being named Indian Ocean’s leading airline shows unequivocally that we are putting our guests and our people first. This is a people business and we know that with well-trained and supported people, we can deliver the best customer experience. We are innovative in our product development and know the importance of maintaining our quality standards.”
Mr Papa added that “partnerships are where we have excelled. Through our codeshare partners and Etihad Airways partners, we are developing a network with global reach, seamless connections and reciprocal flight benefits. There is no doubt that our improved access through our partnerships to world-class training and operational synergies, is making Air Seychelles a stronger and more competitive airline. These awards come at an exciting time in the journey of Air Seychelles and I am extremely proud of the Air Seychelles team which works hard and smart”.
Commenting on Air Seychelles’ wins, WTA president Graham Cooke said: “The World Travel Awards has been recognising and rewarding industry excellence for over 20 years. The bold steps which Air Seychelles has taken to develop the airline and reinvent its product and service offering have been remarkable. In a short space of time, Air Seychelles has risen to be the leading airline of the Indian Ocean, connecting more passengers and serving more destinations, all with its unmistakably Creole signature. We are delighted to present Air Seychelles with these three awards, and wish it every success for the future.”
Tourism and Culture Minister Alain St Ange said “being a Seychellois I’m proud Seychelles has won the award for leading destination in the Indian Ocean and I’m sure all Seychellois share this feeling. We have also won the best tourism board, best cruise port and best cruise destination awards. All the other countries want to win these awards, but Seychelles has become more visible in the recent years and this attracts the many organisations which give out such awards to look at what we are doing. President James Michel talks about what we are doing in Seychelles every time he travels abroad, the Ministry of Tourism and Culture and the Seychelles Tourism Board sell Seychelles at every given opportunity. And Mr Cooke has told me he wants to invite Seychelles to the grand final of the award in Morocco later this year”.
Asked what needs to be done for Seychelles to keep these titles at next year’s awards, the minister replied: “Winning the title is one thing and retaining it is another and it could be even harder. It will depend on every Seychellois to play their role as ambassadors of our country which depends on tourism. When the tourism industry goes through a bad patch we all cry out loud and when it is doing well we should all be proud.”
Seychelles Tourism Board chief executive Sherin Naiken said she did not expect to win the title but has dedicated it to Seychelles.
“Tourism is not only about STB, it encompasses the work being done by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, our staff based locally and in different parts of the world. The award will surely serve as a source of encouragement for them to work even harder for Seychelles,” said Ms Naiken.
For his part, Seychelles Ports Authority chief executive colonel Andre Ciseau has thanked all partners who have played a big role in landing them the awards.
“It’s a collaborative effort with local, regional and international partners and a year-long job as we also have to evaluate our strengths and weaknesses as we compete with other ports in the region. This helps us to maintain our competitive advantage. It also shows the importance the government attaches to tourism growth in Seychelles,” noted Colonel Ciseau.
