July 9, 2010 -- The meeting  Seychelles' ambassadors at State House yesterday was also an opportunity for President James Michel to put forward his strategy for active economic diplomacy.

After the meeting, Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Paul Adam told the national media that Seychelles' image overseas is an excellent one.

The ambassadors at the meeting were Ms Vivienne Fock-Tave to the European Union, Mr Claude Morel to France, Mr Joseph Nourice to South Africa, Mr Ronny Jumeau to the United Nations, Mr Philippe Le Gall to China, and Mr Dick Esparon to India.  

Also present at the State House meeting were the Secretary of State in the President's Office, Mr Barry Faure, and the principal secretary for Foreign Affairs, Mr Maurice Loustau-Lalanne.

"Our image at international level is excellent as a result of the President's effort and that of our ambassadors, and we have to keep up this momentum," said Minister Adam.

He noted that the reunion with the ambassadors forms part of the strategy to promote teamwork as it is vital for Seychelles to project a dynamic image in the international arena.

The President is very satisfied with our position internationally, he said, and our recent successes as a country have been made possible as a result of our proactive image at this level. Mr Adam added that a lot of effort has been put into explaining our challenges to our partners, and as a result we have managed to get their support.

"For example, we would not have been able to deal thoroughly with our reform programme without in-depth discussions with our partners to reschedule our debts," said the Foreign Affairs Minister. "We are also getting financial budget support from the EU, all of which shows the maturity of our country and that our international diplomacy has a great role to play."

Ambassador Ronny Jumeau told the media that Seychelles has a very good reputation abroad, and many small countries were surprised at how we managed to deal with the recent economic crisis.

The ambassadors are in Seychelles to also attend the two-day regional symposium on maritime security to be held here next week. Seychelles will present its long-term plan to combat piracy.

The ambassadors will after the symposium take the plan and present it to other countries and organizations for support.