Outgoing United Nations Resident Coordinator Seychelles and Mauritius bids farewell to President Ramkalawan – African Business

After four years in the position, President Wavel Ramkalawan met with H.E. Christine N. Umutoni, the United Nations Resident Coordinator for Seychelles & Mauritius, to say goodbye at State House.

President Ramkalawan expressed his appreciation and that of the country to Mrs. Umutoni, for her support since she assumed office in 2018. He praised her accomplishments, especially in coordination of all UN agencies in Seychelles. This included harmonisation of support, diversification and quality of assistance and the opening the UNRCO supporting office at Victoria.

“I would like to express the country’s sincere appreciation and on my personal behalf for all the support extended to Seychelles, which we are very grateful for, since you took office in 2018.I wish to commend and congratulate you on your achievements, notably in coordinating the work of all UN agencies operating in Seychelles, including harmonisation of support amongst the agencies, the diversification and the quality of assistance and the opening of the UNRCO supporting office in Victoria. We further count on the support of your successor,” said the President.

The President and Mrs. Umutoni focused their discussion on reviewing the top priority areas where UNDP supported Seychelles and their partnership in the international arena, where Seychelles have a leading role. This includes climate change issues and sustainable environment, vulnerability of the Small Island Developing States, and vulnerability of the Small Island Developing States through key tools such the Multiple Vulnerability Index. They also discussed regional cooperation.

President Ramakalwan reaffirmed his appreciation to the organisation for the successful dialogue in May with the Seychelles Government and stated that he looks forward to a similarly successful implementation of decisions made during the deliberations. The United Nations (UN), Government of Seychelles and the Joint Sustainable Development Goals Fund were signed to implement the Strategic Partnership Framework for 2019-2023. This fund supports the ongoing project, which focuses on solid waste management and the circular economy.

H.E. Mrs. Umutoni, for her part, said that she was very happy to have completed her tenure. She also stated that she left office with valuable lessons learned from the Seychelles, including how the Government of Seychelles managed a peaceful democracy, a successful transfer of power after the 2020 elections and the COVID-19 epidemic. Also, how the country is slowly regaining financial stability due to the global health crisis and the economic crisis. She expressed her satisfaction with the growth of the UN-Seychelles partnership over the years.

The Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Vivianne Tave, and Department of Foreign Affairs officials were also present.

H.E. Christine Umutoni was accompanied at the event by Mr. Sebastien Vauzelle (UNRCO Economist) and Mr. Alexander Mancham (United Nations Coordination Officer for Seychelles).

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of State House – Office of the President of the Republic of Seychelles.