‘Adopt a District’ programme |24 January 2024

A souvenir photograph

Honorary consuls contribute to Perseverance and Grand Anse Mahé

Perseverance and Grand Anse Mahé have benefitted from the ‘Adopt a District’ programme.

At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, yesterday, the honorary consul general in Rome, Italy, Paolo Adelmann, through his daughter Paola Adelmann, assisted Perseverance with its request for IT equipment for the district’s primary school.

Ebe Babah, the honorary consul in Mauritania, represented both Sonja Udovicic, honorary consul in Croatia, and Paul Campbell, honorary consul in Northern Ireland, who collaborated to refurbish the kitchen of the Grand Anse Mahé district administration office.

Launched officially in October 2022 during the honorary consuls conference, the ‘Adopt a District’ initiative aims to bridge the gap between Seychelles’ honorary consuls and grassroots communities.

Myrna Hoareau, director general for Consular and Diaspora Affairs, noted that “the visits in the districts allowed them to be closer to our people, understand the challenges and development priorities of the districts, in order for them to see how best they can assist. The contributions received today will go a long way and will benefit mostly the youth of the country”.

Paola Adelmann, representing the honorary consul general in Rome, shared her personal connection to Perseverance district, expressing the importance of technological advancement for the younger generation. The honorary consul general in Rome, Paolo Adelmann, donated eight Lenovo notebooks with Windows 11 operating systems and i3 processors.

“I am strongly aware that we live in an era of fast technology development which has to be understood and followed by the young generation. For example the quantum mechanics, the supercomputer made of billions of operation and the artificial intelligence, may be considered just as remote possibilities. However, I personally believe that given the speed with which science runs it will be implemented in very short time. Here’s the necessity for the young to study technology and keep themselves updated,” noted Ms Adelmann.

She also acknowledged Mr Penati, director of 02 PC, a provider who contributed to the donation and offered his expertise to develop IT centres in Seychelles.

For his part, Mr Babah emphasised ongoing projects, including twinning schools between districts and countries, and a potential pan-pen project connecting students from Grand Anse Mahé with those in Ireland and Italy.

He also shared they visited the coastal area of the district and identified needs to tackle the erosion problem.

“The three of us came together and personally financed to equip the district administration office with a fully-furnished kitchen to benefit the administration as well as the youth of the district. We have also participated with some donations to the December 7 Disaster Relief Fund after the disasters in December and we renew our full support and express our sympathy to all those who were badly affected.”

Denise Clarisse, director general for community affairs, expressed gratitude for the impact of the ‘Adopt a District’ programme. “Grand Anse Mahé district received valuable cooking utensils, and Ile Perseverance district received eight computer sets for its primary school pupils. We also acknowledge the National Assembly members, respectively Waven William and Desheila Bastienne, along with district administrators, for their dedication to the programme's success.”

Ms Clarisse hopes for a continued collaboration between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Tourism and the Ministry of Local Government and Community Affairs.

She also extended sincere gratitude to the honorary consuls and their representatives and recognised their crucial role in investing in the youth of Seychelles.

Vidya Gappy

Photos: Joena Meme