Message by Minister for Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry, Devika Vidot, on the occasion of the Global Entrepreneurship Week |17 November 2020

Minister Vidot

‘Stand out, innovate, be the change, be a leader’

“The Global Entrepreneurship Week affords me a privileged opportunity as Minister for Investment, Entrepreneurship and Industry to convey our aspirations to the business community on a local as well as an international scale.

“The Global Entrepreneurship Week is a fantastic opportunity for Seychelles to connect with a truly global enterprise community and allows the world to learn about our entrepreneurship proficiencies, despite the size of its economy.

“The globalisation of financial markets and the integration of world economies have led to the development of many sectors of our economy. In particular, Seychelles has managed to develop its tourism industry sustainably and the returns of the Seychelles’ economy has been invaluable. However, the crisis posed by the Covid-19 pandemic has threatened the primary source of wealth for our country. Currently, Seychelles is placed in a dire situation of exploring further into other forms of lucrative business opportunities to diversify and manage its economy.

“On a micro-level, the impact of the pandemic has been detrimental to a lot of businesses and forced many out of a business. However, let us be encouraged to use this opportunity to rethink, re-structure and re-position ourselves to retain our significance. Let us culture the spirit of entrepreneurship in our business community. It is innovation that frequently undermines the basis of competition in existing markets, and creates new markets that may supersede the old ones.

“Therefore, the ministry would like to encourage existing businesses to reflect on ways to improve their competitiveness through differentiation in their strategy using the limited resources available. The management can actively encourage employees and customers to put forward new ideas that will satisfy the demands of the customers but also keep the employees committed to the success of the business. Perhaps serious consideration should also be given to engage in co-operative business activities such as joint ventures or alliances to achieve a strategic synergy that will make all engaged businesses successful.

“We also strongly encourage new entrants to assess the market and analyse what it is that customers want and when they want it and to make use of resources that are available to achieve growth through entry into new products and markets. To those aspiring entrepreneurs with exclusive ideas to initiate and establish a new venture and bring a change in the world ‒ please take the leap and become a leader. An entrepreneur is regarded as being highly creative and innovative, always prepared to take risks and endures the unpredictability of business. Successful entrepreneurs are those however, who learn to embrace these changes. Therefore, do not be afraid to Stand Out, Innovate, Be the Change, Be the Leader!

“Thank you.”