Ile Persévérance gets temporary fish and vegetable market   |21 December 2021

The Seychelles Fishing Authority has handed over a newly constructed temporary fish and vegetable market at Ile Persévérance to the district authorities as well as the fishing and farming communities.

The market, which will also benefit the inhabitants and passers-by, was inaugurated by Designated Minister Jean-François Ferrari, who is also the Minister for Fisheries and the Blue Economy, and chief executive of the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) Nichol Elizabeth,who had the honour of cutting the ribbon to open it and hand it over. This was in a small ceremony held yesterday morning.

Present were the member of the National Assembly for Ile Persévérance Desheila Bastienne, principal secretary for Agriculture Kevin Nancy, district administrators Aaron Bonnelame (Ile Persévérance 1) and Nichole Gabriel (Ile Persévérance 2), fishermen, vegetable and fruit vendors, representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment and from the Ministry of Fisheries and the Blue Economy.

For the past couple of years, fishermen as well as vegetable and fruit vendors had been selling their goods by the roadside, at the mercy of the different weather conditions, and the authorities were not satisfied with the way they were conducting their business.

Equipped with lights and water facilities, the market was constructed by local contractor BCCL at a cost of R600,000 and this includes the clearing of the site. Financed by the European Union, the market took three months to complete since it conception six months ago.

Apart from the market, the fishermen will also benefit from a small pontoon sponsored by SFA for them to disembark their catch.

In his opening remark, Designated Minister Ferrari said although the market is a temporary fixture, the government, in its efforts to provide the best facilities for fishermen and farmers around the country, will invest in a much bigger facility in the future for Ile Persévérance fishermen and farmers.

Designated Minister Ferrari called on the fishermen and farmers to take ownership of the facility and to ensure that it is well kept and that unrelated activities do not occur in the market.

He said the ministry will work to see that other districts without a market do get one.

On behalf of the fishermen, vegetable and fruit vendors, and the inhabitants, Honourable Bastienne thanked the government, through the different ministries, for providing them with the market.

She also called on all those who will be using the market to take good care of the facility.

For his part, SFA chief executive Elizabeth said the SFA will add other features to the market such as more lighting and containers for the fishermen to store their fishing gears.

He added that Ile Persévérance will also benefit from a bigger fishing project, according to its needs, like those going up in the districts of Cascade, Anse Aux Pins, Baie Ste Anne and Grand Anse Praslin, to name a few.

Mariame Mathiot, a vendor who had been selling vegetables and fruits by the roadside for the past two years, said she is very appreciative of the SFA for building this facility and that now she has more space to display her goods away from heat, dust and rain.

Sidney Mathiot, a fisherman for 15 years and also the first to start selling fish by the roadside at Ile Persévérance, said now he can display his catch very nicely with the possibility of keeping it fresh at all times for the benefit of his clients.

Patrick Joubert