December 7 Disaster Relief Fund |21 December 2023

Ambassador Lin and Minister Radegonde during the handover of the donation

China donates US $100,000 to Seychelles

China has made an additional donation of US $100,000 to Seychelles, which will go towards the December 7 disaster relief fund.

The Chinese ambassador, Lin Yan, presented the contribution to the Minister for Foreign Affairs & Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde, yesterday morning at Maison Quéau de Quinssy.

“A friend in need is a friend indeed! On behalf of the Chinese government, I would like to donate US $100,000 to support the people and government of Seychelles in their efforts to rebuild homes and businesses, including the renovation of the Seychelles Bureau of Standards (SBS) and other relief works,” shared Ambassador Lin Yan. The SBS in Providence, a project aided by China, was severely affected in the December 7 explosion.

The donation followed a previous one last week, where a sum of R100,000 was presented to the Ministry of Local Government and Community Affairs, to assist affected individuals.

Ambassador Lin Yan also announced that the Chinese embassy was working on dispatching engineers from Chinese construction companies based in Seychelles to join the loss and damage assessment team.

“Over the past years, our political mutual trust has strengthened, and our mutually beneficial cooperation has produced fruitful results, bringing tangible benefits to our two nations. We are committed to further developing our practical cooperation in various fields.”

She added that the December 7 disaster once again proved Seychelles was also vulnerable to natural disasters and others.

“China is willing to strengthen cooperation in capacity building, disaster prevention, and mitigation to increase the resilience of the local people,” added the ambassador.

Minister Radegonde accepted the generous donation, noting that during adversities, true friends reveal themselves.

“China and Seychelles have always maintained a cordial and wonderful friendship, and this gesture once again proves that we can count on each other. This donation will contribute to the disaster fund but will primarily be used to repair the Seychelles Bureau of Standards. Our relationship with China has no strings attached. China respects Seychelles as a country on equal footing with any other. We have a longstanding relationship, and we continue to build on that.”

Minister Radegonde also updated the press about the various types of help the country was receiving from other friendly countries such as Mauritius and Rwanda which contributed in kinds; UK is assisting with an expert in explosive, while the French has sent a geologist to assess the northern region following the floods. The government will share the country’s needs once the evaluation is completed.

Vidya Gappy

Photo: Kurtrine Albert