Up Close … with Ingrid Sinon, chief executive of the Seychelles Credit Union |30 July 2019
Ingrid Sinon
‘I consider myself an influencer and protagonist of modern development and change’
Compiled by Elsie Pointe
Thirty-three-year-old Ingrid Sinon is one of the youngest chief executives (CEO) in Seychelles, heading the Seychelles Credit Union since October 1, 2015. With her leadership, the credit union has progressed in strides and was, last year, honoured with the ‘Temenos’ award for extending financial inclusion to their customer base. Seychelles NATION met up with Ingrid to discover more about the ambitious and driven young woman.
Ingrid Sinon, a protagonist of modern development and change
Born on April 2, 1986 to Myriam and Radley Sinon, Ingrid hails from a family of four. When asked to describe herself, Ingrid replied: “I am a multi-faceted being who is able to find balance between spirituality and being grounded in this human dimension.”
“I consider myself an influencer and protagonist of modern development and change.”
Childhood
“I spent most of my childhood at Cascade and Bougainville with my parents, grandmothers, siblings and other family members. I went to Cascade primary school, Pointe Larue secondary school and thereafter A-Level school.”
Growing up following two religious faiths might be confusing for most but Ingrid states that her bi-religious household prevented her from developing a narrow mindset.
“From a religious perspective I followed Christianity and Baha’í from my early childhood, as a result of my parents’ beliefs. In hindsight, this is what enabled me to be more open-minded,” Ingrid stresses.
Education
“I have a very diversified educational background as I studied economics, accounting, finance, financial law, risk management, FinTech, artificial intelligence, among other things. Presently, I am fascinated by one programming language and undertaking a crash course, online. I have experience in central banking and banking as well as business and strategic management.”
Ingrid holds her first Master's Degree in Finance and a second Master's Degree in Financial Law.
Career path
Ingrid started off her inspiring career path at the Central Bank of Seychelles where she spent around five years in various capacities such as economist, compliance and risk officer and risk manager. This period would turn out to be an eye-opener for Ingrid.
“My first job was as an Economist at the Central Bank of Seychelles (CBS) and this was at a critical time when the country embarked on its first IMF programme to solve the problems at the time, i.e. 2008. I knew from that job I wanted to be an economic problem solver rather than just reporting on historical facts,” she explains.
After parting ways with the Central Bank, she joined the Seychelles Credit Union –the only operational credit union in the country – as its chief financial officer (CFO) in 2014 and in 2015 rose to the rank of CEO.
Ingrid is also a part-time lecturer at The Guy More Institute, putting in practice all that she has learned so far.
Hobbies
“I love reading although nowadays I listen to audiobooks. I challenge myself to read at least one book per day, especially philosophical books. I am always moving from one challenge to another which stimulates my mind and keeps me focused and grounded. I wish to be a visionary, a futurist and hope to accurately predict the future of Seychelles and make a contribution towards transforming it into something unique and amazing.”
Words of advice to the youth
“Be the co-creator of their own reality! They should be aware that they have the ability to design their own unique lives, as long as they believe in that reality and work towards attaining it. Obstacles and challenges are inevitable but courage and persistence lead to success.”
“I am honoured by this amazing opportunity to share my journey and experiences and hope to inspire others to follow their dreams and optimise their lives,” Ingrid concludes.
