Work on new SBC house on track despite setbacks |10 June 2022
By Vidya Gappy
President Wavel Ramkalawan yesterday visited for the first time the China funded Seychelles Broadcasting and Television Centre, better known as the SBC House, under construction at Union Vale.
This was at the invitation of the Chinese embassy in Seychelles.
President Ramkalawan was accompanied on the visit by Vice-President Ahmed Afif; the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde; and the Minister for Lands and Housing, Billy Rangasamy.
Started on December 18, 2018, the project is now scheduled to be completed and delivered to the government of Seychelles by the end of this year.
This was confirmed by the Chinese ambassador to Seychelles, Guo Wei, the team leader of IPPR Engineering, Hu Zhongjing and the team leader of the general contractor Hunan No.6 Engineering, Zhang Youhua, to President Ramkalawan.
The project, as we may recall, was approved and initiated by the Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China. The management agency is the Agency for International Economic Cooperation under the Ministry of Commerce of China. It is managed on site by China IPPR International Engineering Co. Ltd. and constructed by Hunan No.6 Engineering Co. Ltd.
Ambassador Guo explained that the SBC project will come along with state-of-the-art broadcasting equipment and it is the largest project funded by the Chinese government in Seychelles in recent years.
After the visit, President Ramkalawan interacted with the contractors and he was satisfied with the explanations and the progress of work.
“Thanks to the efforts of the contractor Hunan No.6 Engineering Cooperation and the practical cooperation between the Chinese and Seychellois side, the SBC project is progressing well, is on track in spite of the setbacks of Covid-19, adverse weather and ground conditions. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, both countries have made joint efforts by promoting bilateral economic and commercial cooperation and providing Seychelles with important government assistance for its economic and social development,” shared Ambassador Guo.
So far China has assisted Seychelles with the Palais de Justice, National Assembly Building, Anse Royale Hospital, the Glacis primary school and crèche, the Residence Project at Corgate Estate, among many other projects.
The Chinese ambassador expressed that once completed the SBC House is expected to become another landmark in Seychelles.
Gérard Lafortune, chairperson of the SBC board, noted that the visit went well and “we were all made aware of the work done on this project. There is definitely a delay in the project, due to the pandemic, but the contractor is doing everything possible to deliver the project by the end of 2022”.
Regarding parking space, Mr Lafortune explained that parking space has been designated vis-à-vis the building. “But we are also in discussion with the Ministry of Lands with regard to a plot of land used by the Ministry of Agriculture that can be converted into a parking space for the staff. We have a solution for parking but we are looking for a better one!”
Concerning the connection of water and electricity and the quality of the building, Mr Lafortune assured that everything has been done in this sense and also SBC employed an engineer to sample all the products use on the building.
“The issue is with the products we get in Seychelles and SBC made sure to check/test the products. We made sure that once delivered, the building will not be a major maintenance cost to the government.”
“A new building with new equipment is always good for an organisation but what matters most is the personnel working for SBC. It will be a challenge for the staff to meet the expectation of the public and it will be an opportunity to better ourselves and produce more programmes,” concluded Mr Lafortune.
The accompanying photos show some highlights of the presidential visit yesterday.
Vidya Gappy
Encadre
How big is the SBC House?
For the new China aided project of the Seychelles Broadcasting and Television Center, better known as the SBC House, the total land use is about 5940 square metres, with an irregular shape, measuring about 89m from north to south and 110m from east to west.
The total building area is about 5600 square metres and different buildings are grounded high and low according to the actual geographical conditions.
The building is capable of various functions. This building is for TV broadcasting and post-production, for radio production and broadcasting, and for news broadcasting centre. The two buildings behind are office buildings. Besides, the radio and television system equipment, office furniture and kitchen equipment are provided by the Chinese side.
The architecture of the building is unique by combining the local characteristics that is the popular four-slope roof, with the Chinese characteristics, that is garden courtyard platform on the first and second floor.
The building will also have a conference room, hallway, kitchen, canteen with a maximum accommodation for 60 people, broadcast room, makeup room, prop room, equipment maintenance room and fire control room.
