Official visit of Palau President Tommy Remengesau Jr |30 June 2015

‘Seychelles is a paradise where development benefits the people’

“Seychelles is a paradise and one good thing I’ve learned here is that development is good, but it has to benefit the people.”

Palau PresidentTommy Remengesau Jr said this early yesterday afternoon after a day out visiting different sites on Mahé and meeting people.

President Remengesau Jr arrived here on Sunday afternoon on board an Air Seychelles flight and was welcomed at the Seychelles International Airport by President James Michel. He is in Seychelles as guest of honour for our National Day celebrations. Seychelles celebrated its National Day for the first time on June 29.

Speaking to the local media at the end of his half-day journey which took him from the Savoy Resort Seychelles in Beau Vallon to Barbarons, Anse à La Mouche, Roche Caïman, Perseverance and back to Beau Vallon, President Remengesau Jr said: “This is my first visit to this part of the world. Seychelles is a paradise and it has done a lot of good things by preserving the best and improving the rest. Seychelles and Palau have one common blessing in that we have beautiful islands that we can call home.  There is so much that we can learn from Seychelles. There are a lot of good experiences and at the same time make sure that our resources are sustainable for the next generation.”

He added that they have been meeting good and hospitable people and enjoying the good food.

“We’ve seen the social housing programme. One thing I’ve learned is that development is good, but it has to benefit the people. This is an important reminder for those of us who live in paradise. We rely on tourism and we have to take care of our economy but let’s not forget our people. I will be going back home knowing that I’ve learned a lot of good things, especially that we have island brothers and sisters in this part of the world, that we should continue to network, share ideas and help each other to sustain ourselves for the future,” said President Remengesau Jr who seemed to really enjoy his tour of the island as he danced to the sound of traditional music and sat on big boulders to admire the beauty of the islands.

Accompanied by Environment, Energy and Climate Change Minister Didier Dogley, principal secretaries, chief executives and other officials of the ministry, President Remengesau Jr planted a coco-de-mer seed at the arboretum of the National Biodiversity Centre at Barbarons.

President Remengesau Jr was given a brief tour of the centre and was presented with information about the biodiversity centre, since its inception in 1998. He also visited the arboretum, which has an area dedicated to trees which are planted by VVIPs. The president also visited the Alley of Small Island Developing States and took a photo next to a tree dedicated to his country.

From Barbarons, President Remengesau Jr and his delegation went to Anse à la Mouche to visit the coastal erosion barrier site. From there he went to the sports complex at Roche Caïman to see the exhibits of the National Show. He did not hesitate to mix with the people as he listened to presentations and even got the feel of some new cars.

His last stop was at Persévérance where he viewed the house of Beryl Delorie and he was also given a tour of the housing estate.

Palau is an island country located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is geographically part of the larger island group of Micronesia. The country's population of around 21,000 is spread across 250 islands forming the western chain of the Caroline Islands. The most populous island is Koror. The capital Ngerulmud is located in Melekeok State on the nearby island of Babeldaob. The islands share maritime boundaries with Indonesia, the Philippines, and the Federated States of Micronesia.

The accompanying photographs show President Remengesau while visiting the different sites on Mahé yesterday.