New facilities in the offing for Praslin fishermen |27 April 2021
An SFA official presenting the plans for the projects
The community of fishermen on Praslin is expected to benefit from new facilities in both Baie Ste Anne and Grand Anse.
The news was conveyed in a meeting with the fishermen themselves, members of the Praslin Fishermen Boat Owners Association (PFBOA) and other stakeholders by the Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA).
The meeting, held on Saturday at the Baha’i Centre at Baie Ste Anne, was chaired by the chief executive of SFA, Nichol Elizabeth, alongside the SFA board chairman, Radley Webber and other board members.
The newly devised plans were set up following a visit by President Wavel Ramkalawan and Designated Minister Jean François Ferrari late last year and drawn by architect Marc Gendron.
The meeting was an opportunity for SFA to present the plans to the attendees as well as hear their concerns.
In Baie Ste Anne, the current SFA facilities found next to the police station will now move to the adjacent reclaimed area, after negotiations with the landowner, Eugene Vidot. The facilities will now include a one-storey building which will house 12 gear stores to be rented for storage facilities, a board room, 2 gear shops, offices for the SFA and PFBOA and toilet facilities.
A modern 25m long market with stainless steel tables and roller shutters will cater for sale of fish, fruits and vegetables.
The current jetty shall be extended and will now include a fish shed for unloading of fish and loading of ice from the nearby ice plant, as well as a fuel point.
New pontoons will also be installed.
The facilities are expected to be well fenced and equipped with good security, traffic flow and parking facilities.
SFA is also considering the installation of solar panels on the new buildings in the future.
In Grand Anse, the project will include the installation of a new ice plant and 6 gear stores next to the ‘Lasose Mini Market’ as well as pontoons next to the current jetty to facilitate loading and unloading.
Both projects have already received planning approval and once tender processes are over, construction is expected to start.
Jointly, both projects are estimated to cost between 8 to 10 million rupees.
The projects were well received by the attendees who expressed their appreciation for the much awaited infrastructure as well as their concerns which were not necessarily related to the projects.
When asked about his satisfaction with the turnout, Mr Elizabeth noted, “We expected better turnout of the fishermen themselves but we also understand that on a Saturday morning, most fishermen are busy on duty but we are glad their associations and other colleagues were here. They expressed their concerns which are not related to the design of the projects themselves but rather other issues related to the scope of their work.”
For his part, the chairman of the PFBOA, Richard Bossy, expressed: “The meeting went really well. The plans and projects showcased seem very good and we hope to see its completion by the end of this year. I believe it was a very fruitful meeting which gives us hope that in the future there will be extra infrastructure that would encourage the new generation to join the fisheries industry.”
Members of the National Assembly for both Baie Ste Anne and Grand Anse thanked SFA for the promising plans which they believe will be very beneficial to the Praslin community at large and facilitate the lives of Praslinois fishermen.
“I am happy to see the realisation of a project which had already been discussed in the past. I would like to also thank the fishermen who have come to attend the meeting and I am grateful for their contributions made towards the project. I call on all fishermen to keep working jointly with SFA as well as on SFA to keep providing a platform whereby fishermen and their associations can voice their concerns and views. Let us all stay abreast in order to keep striving for further improvement in the fishing industry,” said Churchill Gill, MNA for Baie Ste Anne.
MNA for Grand Anse, Wavel Woodcock, commented: “I would also like to thank all fishermen for turning up today and thank SFA for the projects presented. I have been part of the battle for such facilities since the 6th Cohort of the National Assembly and I am happy to finally see a positive step towards completion. I am happy to see more unity among the fishermen which I really hope can be maintained so that we can all work together for the betterment of the industry. By keeping our differences aside we can accomplish a lot.”
SFA hopes that local Praslinois construction companies would bid for the construction work and that eventually the fully Praslinois operated projects could come as a Christmas gift which they can all be proud of and which would facilitate the fishermen community for years to come.
Text: Nadia Bedier
Photos: Romano Laurence
