President Danny Faure currently in Malta attending the "Our Oceans Conference," led a panel discussion on Policy and Diplomacy held during the Ocean Youth Summit organised in the margins of the Conference.
The Ocean Youth Summit, co-hosted by the European Union and the Sustainable Oceans Alliance, assembled youths from diverse backgrounds with entrepreneurs, political and civil society leaders, scientists and researchers to brainstorm and come up with new ideas on how best to conserve the Ocean, for the present and future generations.
The panel discussion was aimed at inspiring the youth whilst cultivating leadership and accelerating solutions to address the challenges faced in the sustainable use of the ocean.
The youth delegates participating in the Summit were competitively selected from various countries and Seychelles was represented by two youths, Ms. Angelique Pouponneau and Ms. Kalsey Belle, both from the SIDS Youth AIMS Hub- Seychelles (SYAH).
During his intervention, President Faure placed emphasis on the role of the young people, as custodians of the ocean, in providing innovative ideas to preserve and protect the ocean considering the pivotal role that the ocean plays in our daily lives especially for nations of small island developing states.
He stated “Through institutions which give the youth a voice like the Seychelles National Youth Council to grassroots efforts which encourage youth involvement in marine conservation we are encouraging input from one of the most important segments of our society”. President Faure strongly emphasized the role the youth can play in creating this renewed impetus required to address the collective consciousness of mankind in placing sustainable development at the centre of all initiatives aimed at unlocking the potential of the ocean.
He further highlighted the role diplomacy has played in our ocean advocacy. “Seychelles has used its oceans as part of an innovative foreign policy approach to achieve equity for its people and youth” as demonstrated by the debt swap initiative and the decision taken to designate 30% of our oceanic space as marine protected areas.
One recommendation that emerged strongly from the deliberations of the discussions was the need to improve ocean governance through more robust legal frameworks.
The other panelists included the Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, Mrs. Isabella Lovin, European Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Mr Karmenu Vella, the Indonesia Minister for Fisheries, Mrs. Susi Pudjiastuti, and members of the EU parliament.