Logos Hope is officially open to the public   |12 August 2023

Visitors are now able to board the world’s largest book fair, ‘Logos Hope, docked in Port Victoria since Thursday, following the official opening ceremony yesterday morning.

It was the guest of honour, President Wavel Ramkalawan and the First Lady, Linda Ramkalawan, who cut the ribbons to officially open the boat to the public. The head of state thanked the crew for having included Seychelles in their programme.

“You brought to our beautiful country knowledge, and the knowledge will bring hope,” he elucidated.

Most importantly, he launched an appeal to the Seychellois people stating that the visit has come at the right time, citing the refurbishment of the National Library.

Due to the shelves being empty, he called on the acting mayor, the secretary general of the Seychelles National Institute of Culture, Heritage and the Arts and the people of Seychelles to buy as many books and donate to the National Library.

“We do not have to import those books; they are already here in port. In our short meeting this morning we discussed how this can be done and how we can call on our people to buy the books. The crew have also agreed to place all these books in a store so that we can move them after,” he said, adding the institute should also make the most of the visit.

“Having the vessel in the port and with the recently opened National Library, we can do only one thing; make hay while the sun shines,” concluded the president.

For his part, the managing director, Edward David, recounted the vessel’s last visit to Seychelles in 2015 and expressed how excited they were to be back. He said Seychelles’ open-arms approach was heart warming.

“The mission of ‘Logos Hope’ is to advance the wellbeing of people everywhere we go to and this is achieved in several ways and by sharing knowledge. Enquiring knowledge is a vital part of a person’s development and lays the foundations for opportunities and success in life.”

He added the team and crew were amazed to see the hunger and excitement of books from the Seychellois people.

Moreover, he shared that the team wanted to show God’s love by actions and take to helping those in need in partnership with others. “People need hope and as we build relationships with the people we meet, we want to bring hope by sharing out stories and our hope with the people we meet here in the Seychelles.”

Manager David explained the word ‘Logos’ is translated to the word, God. “We, the community on board seek to live in submission to God and His word. And when we do that, we experience the peace of God which gives us hope.”

For his part, Captain Dirk Colenbrander expressed that being on the sea for seven days was a bit rough but after it had calmed the beautiful paradise that was Seychelles welcomed the vessel with open arms.

“Spontaneously, we started worshipping the maker of this beauty. It was very interesting to hear today that it is also mentioned in the constitution of Seychelles that you say thanks to the Maker for this beautiful place.”

Colenbrander stated that he hopes one or two Seychellois will eventually join their crew to bring the number of nationalities to 68.

Yesterday’s opening ceremony included the screening of a short video showcasing the various countries and cultures that Logos Hope has interacted with, a beautiful parade of nations represented by a member of the Logos Hope team, with Brazil, Romania and India among many others.

To cap off the event, a special performance that is usually put on for only the guest of honour, the Korean Fan Dance, was performed for President Ramkalawan.

In an interview with the press after the event, acting mayor, Lydia Charlie, stated that the mayor’s office welcomed the idea of having such a vessel in Seychelles and is encouraging parents to visit the boat with their children.

“The prices are very affordable, you do not even have to pay shipping so I encourage all of you to come down, different organisations, different partners and buy some books,” she said.

The boat will depart on August 16, 2023.

The accompanying photos show highlights of the official opening ceremony on board Logos Hope yesterday.

Sunny Esparon