Minister Morgan meets tourism trade on La Digue |08 June 2012

Minister Morgan was accompanied by a delegation comprising the Commissioner of Police, the principal secretary for transport, the chief executive of the Seychelles Ports Authority, the acting chief executive of the Seychelles Land Transport Agency (SLTA), as well as other technical officers from his ministry.

Also present were the chairman and chief executive of the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) and officers from the National Drugs Enforcement Agency (NDEA).

The meeting was organised by the Seychelles Hospitality and Tourism Association (SHTA) as a follow-up to a meeting held last year to discuss the growing concern of the La Digue tourism industry where crimes and law enforcement were concerned.

The meeting was chaired by the STB chairman Barry Faure and included presentations from the police, the NDEA, SLTA and the STB.

Among the concerns raised were offences committed against tourists, such as beach theft.
Other points raised were the reaction of the police where response and assistance is concerned, the lack of confidentiality and professionalism of the police as perceived by the public, as well as the lack of security on the beaches of La Digue.

In response, Minister Morgan stressed that the police should conduct an investigation on the issues raised by the trade and take action to address the matter so that the La Digue community can have more confidence in the force and order can be maintained.

The Police Commissioner also announced that a senior police officer of assistant superintendent rank has been appointed to ensure the operational standard of the La Digue police.

Other measures announced by the minister and the Commissioner of Police to further beef up the capacity of the police force on La Digue were the integration of Ghurkhas with the police on the island to ensure that there are more patrol services and allow for the PSSW (Police Support Services Wing) officers posted there to be responsible for security on the beach besides their normal duties.

Minister Morgan and the chairman of STB assured the community of their continued commitment to ensuring that law and order is upheld on the island so that La Digue remains not only the eco-capital of Seychelles but also a crime-free community for which it is renowned.

Besides issues regarding the police, also on the agenda were points related to the road transport policy where the minister invited dialogue on the policy for the introduction of electric vehicles on La Digue as part of the government’s vision for the Island.

Minister Morgan also gave an account of his visit to France together with the Minister for Tourism and Culture Alain St Ange and the chief executive of STB, Elsia Grandcourt, where discussions were held with airline representatives and tour operators with the aim finding solutions to re-marketing the Seychelles brand in France.

Ms Grandcourt also presented tourism arrival statistics from the beginning of 2012 to date.

After the meeting, Minister Morgan continued his programme with a site visit to the La Digue Jetty, the port authority’s office and the police station.