Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora, Ambassador Barry Faure, held a bilateral meeting with his South African counterpart, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, H.E. Ronald Lamola, on the margin of the 46th SADC Ordinary Summit in Durban.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the two Ministers to reaffirm the longstanding friendship between Seychelles and South Africa, and to discuss avenues for deepening cooperation between the two countries on a number of bilateral matters.
Minister Faure thanked South Africa for its leadership of SADC and for the hospitality extended to the Seychelles delegation throughout the Summit. Minister Lamola, in turn, expressed appreciation for Seychelles’ consistent support to South African candidatures in multilateral organisations, describing the country as a reliable partner within the region and beyond.
Both Ministers underscored the importance of the bilateral relationship between Seychelles and South Africa, particularly in the economic sector, and welcomed the growing interest of South African investors in Seychelles. They also agreed on the importance of convening the 4th Session of the Seychelles-South Africa Joint Commission for Cooperation, set to take place in 2027.
On matters of diplomatic representation, Minister Lamola confirmed that South Africa’s newly appointed High Commissioner to Seychelles will soon travel to Victoria to present credentials. Minister Faure similarly announced the appointment of Seychelles’ High Commissioner to South Africa.
Paying tribute to outgoing High Commissioner H.E. Hlamalani Nelly Manzini, Minister Faure commended her active tenure, particularly her contribution to advancing the Maritime Corridor Strategy, and expressed hope that she would soon pay her farewell courtesy call.
The meeting closed with both Ministers reaffirming the strength of Seychelles-South Africa relations and their shared commitment to deepening cooperation across all areas of mutual interest.
Africa Fact: Malian sailors got to America in 1311 AD, 181 years before Columbus. An Egyptian scholar, Ibn Fadl Al-Umari, published on this sometime around 1342. In the tenth chapter of his book, there is an account of two large maritime voyages ordered by the predecessor of Mansa Musa, a king who inherited the Malian throne in 1312. This mariner king is not named by Al-Umari, but modern writers identify him as Mansa Abubakari II.
Africa Fact: On a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 AD, a Malian ruler, Mansa Musa, brought so much money with him that his visit resulted in the collapse of gold prices in Egypt and Arabia. It took twelve years for the economies of the region to normalise.
Troublemasher
Fun South African Fact: South African Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the world’s first heart transplant on 3 December 1967 at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town. The groundbreaking surgery was carried out on Louis Washkansky and Dr. Barnard was assisted by a large and exceptional team of surgeons, nurses and technicians. One of Dr. Barnard’s assistants was Hamilton Naki, a black laboratory assistant who had worked previously as a gardener and went on to work in the animal laboratory at the University of Cape Town. He had assisted Dr Barnard with research leading to the transplant. In the apartheid days, Naki had no access to higher education due to his race. Despite being unable to access formal training, he learned from and assisted university researchers and went on to do astonishing work.
Pitfall
Ja, Nee – Yes, NoOften used in succession, these two words are used to express agreement or confirmation with someone or something.Example: “Ja, Nee, I’m fine thanks.”