Seychelles Fishing Authority (SFA) has received new leadership with the appointment of a new chairperson and Secretary of Fisheries by Seychelles President Wavel Ramkalawan.
Ramkalawan appointed Radley Weber as the new SFA board chairperson to spearhead the new team as the country seeks to promote and develop the country’s fishing industry and associated resources over the next three years. The appointment of both the board and its chairperson was backdated to 8 February, 2021.
The unveiling of the new board came almost at the same time that Ramkalawan appointed Roy Clarisse to the position of Principal Secretary for Fisheries, as the government endeavors to transform the Seychelles into a preferred source of quality seafood in the Eastern Africa region.
Clarisse had previously worked as a systems manager with the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, and an ICT manager at the Seychelles Fishing Authority, where he rose to the position of deputy CEO and acting CEO. Since 2016 he has also been serving as the Special Advisor for Fisheries in the Seychelles government.
Both the new SFA board and the new principal secretary now have the burden of fulfilling the long-term government agenda for the fisheries sector, including prioritizing the development and transformation of post-harvest into high value-added seafood products that competes effectively in the international market.
The new fisheries leadership is also expected to increase the role of the private sector in Seychelles seafood industry, and woo more investment into the fisheries sector in the long term.
Seychelles is also working at improving the fisheries protocols it signed with the European Union by having some of the components in the agreements re-negotiated for the benefit of island nation.
“This agreement could have included other aspects that could have been more beneficial to Seychelles, and there are some provisions that will allow us to put forth our concerns and points, so that whilst waiting for the next agreement, we can make some adjustments so that Seychelles can be better rewarded for its blue gold,” Seychelles Fisheries Minister Jean-François Ferrari said in 2020.
Photo courtesy of the Seychelles
