President Wavel Ramkalawan chaired a scheduled meeting of the Cabinet today, Wednesday 4th May at which a number of policy memoranda were considered.

Cabinet approved for the 147 prefabricated housing units at Perseverance to be sold to its occupants. The price of the units will be determined by the Ministry of Lands and Housing and Property Management Company (PMC) subject to clear conditions of sale. The sale will be inclusive of the price of the land. This is part of Government’s plan for people to own their houses.

Tenants unwilling to buy their unit will be offered the alternative to move into other accommodation, as these become available.

Cabinet discussed in detail and approved for the signing of a Petroleum Exploration Agreement with Adamantine Energy Ltd. This Agreement is in addition to two existing agreements on oil exploration in the EEZ of Seychelles.

The agreement will not have any financial implications for Seychelles but will bring a number of advantages such as economic benefits during the research phase as well as in the event of discovery of commercially exploitable petroleum resources. There will also be educational benefits through an education fund that the company will be paying for as per the agreement; environmental benefits through EIAs; and social benefits through corporate social responsibility projects.

The research undertaken will also provide Seychelles with much data about its ocean environment that would otherwise be highly costly to acquire.

In approving for the signing of the agreement President Ramkalawan said: “Whilst our country’s principal focus remains on conservation and protection of our pristine and unique environment, this should not preclude us, within the framework of the Blue Economy, to engage in research and exploitation of resources that may lie below our ocean floor. We firmly believe that we can do both: conserve and develop at the same time. We have a duty to explore all projects that could bring wealth to our people, as long as this is done with the utmost respect for our environment.”

He requested that prior to signing of the agreement, further work should be done to ensure that environment protection measures are firmly imbedded in the agreement.

Seychelles has meanwhile reserved 32% of its ocean space as marine protected areas where development activities are not allowed or restricted. This exceeds the commitment made to protect 30% of ocean space by the year 2030.

Cabinet approved a proposal to have a Needs Based Home Care Service through a Home Care Agency. The proposal draws on the recommendation made in the World Bank Long Term Care Report for Seychelles. Moving away from the current simplistic model of having just two categories, half and full day care based only on hours, the proposed reform will be more targeted to better meet the needs of the individuals. The service will be modernized, professionalized and regulated by the Home Care Agency. The new model will allow for private sector participation in the care service. The President reiterated the need for efficiency and quality of care. He made an appeal for family members to participate in the care of their parents and the elderly in need.

Several proposals were considered by Cabinet and discussions were undertaken on the review of subsidies in the livestock sector. Cabinet agreed that subsidies will be capped. Further analysis will be done to finalize the subsidy regime for announcement to the public.

Further details to the media will be provided by the relevant Ministry.