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National Assembly

Hon. Gervais Henrie’s call for diaspora population count passed |05 August 2021

The National Assembly, during yesterday’s sitting, approved a motion calling for the government to initiate an exercise to establishthe accurate population of the Seychellois diaspora across the world.

The motion, brought by Hon. Gervais Henrie, will help towards influencing the state’s policies towards the participation of all Seychellois in the process for national development, in future. Hon. Henrie noted that there are opportunities to benefit from the competencies and experiences of the diaspora for development on the national front.

“Members of the diaspora often receive information about the development from their country. They also give information to different groups and even the government of the own countries. Actors in development and even governments consult members of the diaspora to better inform them on policies, local practices and international standards being applied. Members of the diaspora often collaborate on projects with the public service, private sector or civil society, so this is enough to consolidate the relationship and interaction with Seychellois across the world,” said Hon. Henrie.

“Information will help us to know who we can approach as professionals in different domains, technicians, advisors, investors or businessmen, others who have contacts to facilitate exchanges that will benefit us as a nation and a country,” Hon. Henrie pointed out.

Seychelles as a country stands to benefit socio-economically, culturally, and in its political development, and in addition, in terms of financial capacity, ideas, innovation and technology, Hon Henrie added. He proposed that government builds on the foundations of the unit established within the department of foreign affairs, which provides information and assistance to the diaspora who contact the office. With regards to the section’s website, he also made a suggestion that the e-registration procedure be expounded for collection of additional data.

“After all, at a time when the country’s resources are very limited, why not after a while that the facility is online, conduct an evaluation to determine how effective it is, and from there we can propose necessary improvements to ensure that government can benefit with regards to diaspora policies,” Hon. Henrie added.

Similarly, Hon. Kelly Samynadin, Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS) elected member for Au Cap, spoke of the economic benefits that the country can derive from the diaspora to encourage investments domestically, among other benefits, while Hon. Phillip Monthy, LDS elected member for Cascade, highlighted the economic contributions the diaspora makes towards the domestic economy.

The motion was approved by 24 votes in favour. Eight abstained from voting.

 

Laura Pillay

 

 

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