The President of the Republic, Mr Danny Faure, received a high-level delegation from the National Narcotics Agency of Indonesia, currently on an official visit to Seychelles.

Their visit stems from the recent visit of the Secretary of State for the Agency for the Prevention of Drug Abuse and Rehabilitation, Dr Patrick Herminie, to Indonesia to explore potential exchanges between the two countries in the area of drug prevention and rehabilitation.

President Faure welcomed the delegation to Seychelles and expressed his sincere appreciation for the longstanding and friendly relations that exist between Seychelles and Indonesia, and specifically the new cooperation focused on combating narcotics trafficking and rehabilitation.

“On behalf of the Government and people of Seychelles, I would like to say thank you for agreeing to support us in this domain. It is our hope that such cooperation will further cement the existing friendly bilateral ties that we share, and lead to mutual benefits for our people,” said President Faure.

The meeting was an opportunity for the Indonesian delegation to brief the President on their technical experience and systems in place to not only address drug prevention and rehabilitation, but minimise entry and supply of drugs to their islands, an area Seychelles as an island nation can greatly benefit from.

As part of the official visit, the delegation also met with local key officials from the Agency for Prevention of Drug Abuse and Rehabilitation, and discussed potential support for the Seychelles Drug Rehabilitation Centre including manpower, training, exchange programme for recovering addicts, and the supply of equipment. The delegation will also visit Cap Ternay, the proposed location of the rehabilitation centre in Seychelles.

The delegation comprised of the Governor of East Kalimantan Province, Mr Isran Noor, the Chief of National Narcotics Agency, Mr Heru, the Deputy Chief of Narcotics Prevention, Mr Ali Johardi, the Deputy for Regional Cooperation, Ms Dhini Dwi Mandiri, the Surveillance Technology Partner and the House Speaker East Kalimantan Province, Mr Muhammad Syahrun, and other officials.

Also present at State House was the the Secretary of State for the Agency for the Prevention of Drug Abuse and Rehabilitation, Dr Patrick Herminie, and the Special Envoy of Seychelles for ASEAN, Mr Nico Barito.