President Danny Faure received the Director General of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries for the European Commission, Mr Joao Aguiar Machado, at State House today. He was accompanied by the Ambassador and Head of Delegation of the European Union (EU) to the Republic of Seychelles, H.E. Mrs Marjaana Sall.

The President welcomed Mr Aguiar Machado on his first official visit to Seychelles and on behalf of the Seychelles government, expressed appreciation for all the support given by the EU and for being an excellent partner in development of Seychelles.

"I would like to express my country's appreciation for the long outstanding partnership between Seychelles and the European Union. If today we have infrastructure, policies and development in the fisheries sector, we owe it to the EU for the help that you've given us over the past thirty years. We value this partnership and we look forward to further development of our already excellent relationship," said President Faure.

During the meeting, President Faure and Mr Aguiar Machado discussed issues of mutual interest and value to both Seychelles and the European Union, in which they explored new avenues of cooperation. They spoke about capacity building in the fisheries sector and enhancement to modern technologies, good governance structure of the ocean, blue economy, and maritime security among others.  Mr Aguiar Machado conveyed the commitment of EU to continue partnering with the Seychelles and providing technical assistance where necessary.

Speaking to the national media after the meeting, Mr Aguiar Machado said that Seychelles is a key partner for the European Union in the fisheries sector. He said that his visit to Seychelles testifies the importance of the bilateral relations between Seychelles and the EU as well as the will to broaden their relations.

Also present at the meeting was the Minister of Fisheries and Agriculture, Mr Michael Benstrong, Chairman of the Seychelles Fishing Authority, Mr Philippe Michaud, Foreign Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Claude Morel, Diplomatic Advisor to the President, Ambassador Callixte D'offay, Chief Executive Officer of the Seychelles Fishing Authority, Mr Bernard Arnephy, Head of Unit responsible for Fisheries Agreements (European Commission), Mr Christian Rambaud, Policy Officer (European Commission), Mr Alan Gray, and Attaché (European Commission), Mr Denis Reiss.