STA NOW EXPECTS PHASE ONE OF RECONSTRUCTION TO BE READY BY MID JULY
(Posted 02nd April 2014)
The Seychelles Minister for Tourism and Culture, Alain St. Ange, yesterday announced that the expected completion date of phase one of the complete remodeling of the Seychelles Tourism Academy, is the 15th of July.
A recent site visit to the academy at La Misere, set on a piece of prime real estate with stunning views across the Indian Ocean, saw the Minister meet with the STA Principal Flavien Joubert, General Manager Peter Moncherry as well as the construction company and the project consultant for an extensive tour of the new facilities.
The Minister was accompanied on the tour of the academy by his Principal Secretary for Tourism Ms. Anne Lafortune and his Principal Secretary for Culture Ms. Benjamine Rose.
(The proverbial million dollar view from the Seychelles Tourism Academy)
Phase one, of three overall, of the rebuilding works comprises an academic block of 15 classrooms, a state of the art language laboratory, a dedicated management course classroom and a reference library besides the security gate house, a public restaurant and a bar. A sewerage treatment plant is also being installed to serve the academy, which, when fully completed, may after all house several hundred students at any given time.
The Minister was after the inspection tour then informed that all the furniture with regard to Phase 1 had already been delivered to the site. The contractor was requested to provide a progress report within a week’s time on all the areas that are to be completed by the 15th July 2014, including external works. Thereafter will be a monthly progress report emphasizing on completion date of each block. Minister St. Ange emphasized that if works for Phase 1 were not completed by the 15th July 2014 penalties as per the “FIDIC” contract agreement signed by the contractor, meaning 1% of the total Contract price per day penalty, will start to take effect, giving the contractors ample incentive to actually complete the construction on time.
(Construction of Phase 1 in full swing as seen in late October last year)
For construction work on Phase 2 of the project it was agreed with the contractor that this would be completed by the 14th of December 2014. This will include the new administration block, a completely new demonstration kitchen and an adjoining restaurant and a new meeting and banqueting room which will earn the academy income by being commercially marketed.
Minister St. Ange also confirmed that no work of the Phase 3 part of the project would be starting until all the works covered in Phase 2 had been fully completed.
Phase 3 includes the remodeling of an existing building into an application hotel of initially 30 rooms and the creation of a Spa where local Seychellois can train to learn all about wellness programmes and wellness regimes, a major reason for many tourist visitors to come to the islands.
After his visit to the Seychelles Tourism Academy, Minister Alain St. Ange said that the Government of Seychelles was investing in a Tourism Academy to make sure it becomes a key asset to the local tourism industry and a leading institution of higher learning for all of Africa. ‘The Government is determined to deliver for Seychelles a Tourism Academy that will serve the industry that remains the pillar of our economy. We are determined to continue to train our local workforce to ensure we have Seychellois in the frontline at our resorts’ Minister St.Ange said at the end of his visit.
(STA is holding annual competitions to promote excellence among the students)
This correspondent has been a regular visitor to the STA using every stay on the island to see progress and interact with management and staff, all of whom have been extremely accommodating to answer questions and show off their latest advances.
STA has over the past years forged a close cooperation with the Shannon Hospitality Institute where many Seychellois students now attend degree courses in hospitality and tourism management but also signed agreements with fellow tourism training institutions like a hotel school in Shanghai / China, Muscat / Oman and an academy in Malta. Exchange programmes for lecturers have been put into place as well as for students and only two weeks ago was it reported here that a number of Chinese hospitality students were accepted by the Seychelles Tourism Academy to be placed with some of the archipelago’s leading resorts and hotels for internships and hands on training. Seychelles, a small island nation with a big vision for the future.
