Daily Archives: April 20, 2024

Swimmer Felicity Passon is one of the athletes on the Olympic Scholarship and qualified for the last Olympic Games in Tokyo. (Seychelles Nation)

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Seychelles will have at least three participants in the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris from July 26 to August 24 according to a top official.

So far no athletes from Seychelles have qualified for the Games but the island nation will compete as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will issue invitations to ensure that every nation can be represented at the games.

The secretary general of the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (SOCGA), Alain Alcindor, told reporters, "In athletics, one athlete will be invited, unlike before when it was two."

He explained the Seychelles Athletics Federation will have three events they can apply to participate in; 100m sprint, 800m and the marathon.

Two athletes will be invited in the swimming competition, a male and a female, and "this already guarantees that we will have at least three athletes at the games." said Alcindor.

He said that late last year, "we were asked to submit the names of the athletes that we believe could be invited based on their 2023 performance, which is called a universality place, and we have applied for mainly the athletes that are on the Olympic scholarships."

Alcindor explained that not all disciplines will accept the universality place and that includes swimming and athletics, since they will receive an invite through their federations.

According to SOCGA, there are five Seychellois athletes on the Olympic Scholarship and they are swimmer Felicity Passon, sprinters Ned Azemia and Sharry Dodin, boxer Shain Boniface and sailor Dean Mathiot.

Alcindor explained that more places could become available as there are times when countries decide not to send their athletes to the games even if they have qualified. When this happens, spots remain open and the IOC redistributes it to other nations.

Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, has been participating in the Olympic Games since 1980 after it set up a National Olympic Committee in 1979 now the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (SOCGA).

In the last competition in Tokyo, Japan, five Seychellois took part. Two athletes qualified for a spot - sailor Rodney Govinden and swimmer Felicity Passon.

SwimmerSimon Bachmann wasinvited in view of his performance and participation in high level competitions.

Ned Azemia made hissecond appearance in the Games after his debut in the 2016 Rio Olympic in which he competed in the 400-metre hurdles while judokaNantenaina Finesse, made hisOlympic debut by invitation.

Paris 2024 will feature the debut of breakdancing as an Olympic event and will be the final Olympic Games held during the presidency of IOC President Thomas Bach. The Games will be the first to feature an identical number of athletes between men and women.

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Seychelles to send 3 sportspeople to Olympics in Paris - Seychelles News Agency

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Peggy Vidot, Minister for Health, and Flavien Joubert, Minister forAgriculture, Climate Change and Energy. (Seychelles News Agency)

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(Seychelles News Agency) - The Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Agriculture, Climate Change and Energy have signed an agreement to work together on the establishment of a national One Health platform aimed at making the identification of potential diseases in Seychelles more effective.

The signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the two ministries is described as a commitment to integrated approaches to human, environmental and animal health.

"This MoU will create the platform for both parties to work closer together, where it can now be a more structured collaboration, which will allow us to share resources, being physical resources and human resources towards a common goal," said Rodney Philo, the chief animal health and livestock officer.

Philo explained that research shows that 85 percent of diseases come from animals and therefore by working together, it will allow quicker decision-making for necessary action to take place.

"The inseparable links between agriculture, nutrition and health, those between health and climate change, those between health and bio-security, the growing health threats at the centre of animal and human ecosystems and the challenges to be met in terms of antimicrobial resistance, all require a common approach to which we are committed today, clearly and resolutely," said the Minister for Health, Peggy Vidot, in her address, during the signing ceremony, which took place the Savoy Resort and Spa, Beau Vallon, on Friday.

She added that "Collaboration between our two ministries to safeguard human health, animal health and environmental health, means safeguarding our survival as a nation."

The Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Energy, Flavien Joubert said that the MoU signing is an important step towards strengthening the One Health approach.

"By working together, we more effectively address complex health challenges and protect the health of humans and animals...The One Health approach recognises the interdependence of human, animal and environmental health and highlights the need for a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to addressing health challenges," he added.

The SEGAOne Health network is the health arm of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) in matters of public health, animal health and environmental health.

It brings together more than 400 health professionals from ministerial departments of member states, reference training and research institutions in the region, and benefits from a strong partnership with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OMSA).

It has been supported since 2009 by the French Development Agency (AFD) via RSIE projects. In complementarity with the implementation of the third phase (RSIE3), the European Union (EU) also supports the SEGA One Health network through a new project, RSIE4, implemented by the IOC since December 2020.

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Seychelles working towards One Health platform for humans and animals - Seychelles News Agency

Seychelles' authorities are offering a reward of SCR 100,000 ($7,425) to anyone having credible information on the recent suspected gas attacks and pledge to investigate the incidents.

The Minister for Internal Affairs, Errol Fonseka, made the statement when answering an urgent question by Wallace Cosgrow, a proportionate member of the United Seychelles party in the National Assembly.

Since Monday, April 8, an unknown substance in gaseous form has affected people in contact with it at several primary and secondary schools and the staff of the judiciary, also closing down the parliament.

Fonseka passed on a message from President Wavel Ramkalawan, who has been on an overseas mission since April 10 - attending the United Nations Ocean Decade conference in Barcelona, Spain, and the Our Ocean conference in Greece.

"He feels for those who have been affected, especially the children who have breathed in the unknown substance and have fallen ill," said Fonseka.

He added that the President has pledged to do everything to ensure that the authorities get to the bottom of the situation.

"There are no agencies that use chemicals in their operations such as Seypec, PUC and who have reported having an accidental discharge," said Fonseka.

He added that none of the agencies were operating in the areas where the incidents occurred and initially the authorities believed that "the marine sediments found in lagoons could be responsible for releasing a gas called balsamic methane."

"We are now treating this as a criminal case, and after the two incidents of yesterday (Monday) and today (Tuesday) all indications point to criminality. I also want to inform the National Assembly that the police is intensifying its work on all levels," said the minister.

Fonseka asked people to be vigilant as such attacks are mainly aimed at spreading fear.

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In the latest figures presented by the Minister, 353 people, both children and adults reported their respective health centres.

"They are experiencing symptoms of headaches, itching and stomach pains among others," explained Fonseka and added that the "Beau Vallon and Bel Eau school incidents have forced us to look into other areas."

Meanwhile, in a press release statement on Wednesday, United Seychelles (US) said it is truly disgraceful that children are deliberately being targetted.

"We, the United Seychelles Party, firmly believe that every individual has the right to live in a safe and secure environment, free from harm and fear and It is truly disheartening to witness such acts of malice, especially when they target educational institutions and workplaces," said United Seychelles.

The party added "It is truly astounding that, despite the presence of numerous security apparatuses in the country, the culprits are still able to operate with impunity. We sincerely hope that the individuals responsible for these heinous acts will be apprehended and brought to justice the soonest."

"We demand that the authorities in Seychelles take immediate and decisive action to bring the culprits responsible for these atrocious deeds to justice, we strongly urge the government to implement effective measures in order to put an end to these acts of terror," said United Seychelles.

Furthermore, the Seychelles Inter-Faith Council's (SIFCO) managing committee issued a statement also expressing concern over the incidents.

"We are concerned because the incident is causing fear among the population especially school children. We hope and pray that all concerned can bring the situation to its finality soon, " said SIFCO.

Read more here:

Seychelles' Authorities Offering Reward for Info On Suspected Gas Attacks - AllAfrica - Top Africa News