The  United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Mr. Wu Hongbo, has paid a courtesy call on President Michel this morning at State house. Mr. Wu Hong Bo is also the Secretary General of the Conference on Small Islands Developing States, which is due in Samoa next year, and he has come to Seychelles for the AIMS Regional Preparatory meeting for the SIDS Conference, which starts tomorrow.

The President thanked Mr. Wu Hongbo for the support of the United Nations in developing a framework for sustainable development of Small Island Developing States, particularly taking into consideration the vulnerabilities and specificities of islands.

The President and the Under Secretary General spoke about the upcoming meeting and the challenges that are faced by small islands. President Michel  emphasised the importance of the blue economy concept in the sustainable development agenda. Mr. Wu expressed his wish that the preparatory meeting has very solid outcome where Seychelles can share ideas for the development of the blue economy.

 “...The United Nations have been very supportive of this idea; this is a part of a sustainable development agenda for the future. I hope that in this Conference, all those taking part re-identify the challenges of the small island states and find the way forward,” said Mr. Wu during an interview with the press.
 
Editors note
 •            Present in the meeting were also; Minister for Environment and Energy, Professor Rolph Payet, the President's Diplomatic Adviser, the Secretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Barry Faure and the Ambassador Callixte d'Offay, as well as the UN Resident Coordinator for Seychelles and Mauritius (based in Mauritius), Mr. Simon Springett, and the Director of the Sustainable Development Division  of UN DESA, Mr Nikhil Seth.

 •            Mr. Wu Hongbo, who heads of the UN Department for Economic and Social Affairs,  will  attend tomorrow the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, and South China Sea (AIMS) Regional Preparatory Meeting for the 2014 Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which will take place in Apia, Samoa from 1st to 4th September 2014.

•             The preparatory meeting will be held from 17th to 19th July 2013. To note, it is the last of three regional meetings in July, which will provide the regional inputs for the Conference.