SEYCHELLES FIRST TRIMESTER GROWTH OUTPACES GLOBAL RISE IN TRAVEL
(Posted 10th July 2015)
UNWTO yesterday published their latest data covering the first trimester of 2015 and global arrivals were up by four percent over the same period a year ago.
Growth for Africa however was negative and in average, combining North and sub-Saharan Africa, down by 6 percent.
Enter the Seychelles into the equation which has once again bucked the trend and for the same period recorded a remarkable nearly 16 percent growth in arrival numbers and equally notable, backed up by Central Bank statistics received a few days ago, recorded a revenue and spending growth by Eurozone tourists, which form the bulk of the archipelago’s arrivals of over 15 percent during the same period of time.
There are lessons to be learned, not that they have been learned however in the past, by taking a closer look about the secret to success, a secret coyly kept by the country’s tourism minister Alain St. Ange when asked during the opening press conference of the 2015 Carnival International de Victoria. He then, tongue in cheek, answered: ‘If I tell you the secret Wolfgang it will be a secret no more’ to the applause of those present, but close observers of course can piece the recipe together what makes the Seychelles juggernaut waltz on.
For one has the country attained world leadership when declaring more than half of its territory as protected areas, a resounding commitment to keep their main asset, their pristine waters and beaches, protected for future generations.
Then of course is it the image of glitz and glamour for which the Seychelles are today known and which draws the glitterazia, the captains of industry, the rich and mighty, politicians, bankers, industry and real estate moguls and not to forget royalty to the archipelago. Less known but equally effective is the campaign to fill the beds of home grown and properly licensed B&B’s, holiday lets and self-catering chalets, which market segment takes advantage of the added seats now available to Mahe with capacity rises from both home carrier Air Seychelles / Etihad and of course of the global connector, aka Emirates.
Add the commitment made by the government to promote the use of solar and other renewable energy sources with subsidies and duty cuts on electric and hybrid vehicles and there is another answer why the Seychelles are in such demand – there politicians do not just talk about the need to fight climate change and keep the environment intact but actually act.
Last but not least, among many other factors, is a constant engagement by government with the private sector. While they may not always agree, especially when it comes to taxation and facilitation of businesses, they do sit and try to trash out their differences. They do that largely behind closed doors, leaving the disputes they have away from the prying eyes of those who would exploit them to the Seychelles’ disadvantage. Visits by the Minister himself, accompanied by his Principal Secretaries and the CEO of the Tourism Board and other key team members, to all hospitality businesses across the key islands has gone a long way to make government aware of sentiments and at times festering issues. Empowerment of Seychellois, inclusion of Culture way before UNWTO and other global bodies though of that, all added to the magnetic pull the Seychelles have as a destination.
Rising arrival numbers and rising revenues must be music in the ears of Alain St. Ange and his team, as well as in the ears of President Michel, who yielded the tourism ministry to him in 2012 after a hugely successful spell as CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board.
And what does the future hold? President Michel, a man of the people, gave a resounding reassurance during his address to the nation at the first ever combined National and Independence Day celebrations when he ruled out a tourism development at Cap Ternay and further put a moratorium on all new large resort developments until a comprehensive study on the impact and the sustainability, as well as maximum carrying numbers, has been undertaken. Michel, the global creator of the merged Blue and Green Economies, clearly knows that an intact environment, the need of a rising population and the expectations of the global tourism industry must be brought on the same wavelength and harmonized, if it is to continue.
These, in short, are the reasons I see for the constant rise of popularity of Destination Seychelles, the industry’s success and progress where the rest of Africa has faltered. Lessons to be learned, and hopefully this time taken seriously. Seychelles, truly another world.
Click on www.seychelles.travel for added information about the archipelago’s tourism attractions.
