New group to better promote tourism industry |24 January 2009

He was speaking at a press conference at the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) to officially present the committee members.

The new body was set up after the reorganisation of the STB, in which the private sector was given a controlling say in running the country’s tourism industry.

The formation of the working group was announced by Finance Minister Danny Faure during his budget address last December. Its aim is to oversee the marketing of Seychelles and to raise funds for the STB’s marketing budget.

Mr St Ange (right in photo on the left) addressing members of the committee during the press conference. Next to Mr St Ange is STB’s chairman Maurice Loustau-Lalanne

Its members are Ahmed Didi, Frederic Vidal, Daniella Alis-Payet, Eddie D’Offay, Freddy Karkaria, Alice Tirant, Anna Butler-Payette, Hervé Duboscq, Jonathan Nowell, Ash Behari, Veronique Laporte, Patrick Payet, Blaisilia Hoffman and Jenifer Sinon.

Mr St Ange said the committee has immediately started to analyse all current marketing strategies, the structure of the STB’s marketing department and of Seychelles’ tourism offices and representation contracts in different parts of the world.

He said the committee will, in the coming weeks, propose changes to the marketing department’s structure. This will enable it to present a package – a new staffing structure, a revised overseas representation concept and a vision of the country’s marketing as now seen by the private sector – at the International Tourism Board (ITB) fair in Berlin in March.

Mr St Ange said the ITB fair was chosen as it is one of the key tourism fairs and one where Seychelles has always been well represented.

The fair will be a major push into the German market for Air Seychelles, with its newly introduced weekly flight to Germany.

And it will also be used to bring out the mandate given to the private sector to oversee and manage the tourism industry, he added.

Mr St Ange said the committee is convinced this important government decision will not only be well received but will help to give the necessary confidence to overseas tour operators to promote Seychelles as one of the main tourism destinations they offer their clients.

He said the STB has never had the budget needed to market Seychelles properly, and now it is the committee’s task to find the required funds. Mr Faure has pledged US $1.5 million to the fund, but virtually the whole sum is already committed to the work of the previous set-up, he added.

To be innovative in getting Seychelles’ tourism moving ahead, more funds are needed.

“I need, on behalf of the MFC, to state that tourism is not only an affair of our committee, it is not only the STB’s business but everybody’s business,” said Mr St Ange.

He explained that the whole economy of the country is affected when the tourism industry falters, and every business enterprise suffers when there is a downward trend.

“This is why we are taking the opportunity to appeal to every business, every company and every businessman to take time and assess the importance of investing in the country’s marketing fund,” he said.

Mr St Ange ended by appealing to everyone to work together to improve on the visitors’ arrival forecast for this year, which made news around the world.

“We want to be able to announce our ability to stop the downward trend now being experienced by the country, but to do that we need the country to be behind our effort and our mission,” he said.