Why a business award

Why a business award

02-December-2015
‘The Business Award acknowledges entrepreneurship, creates role models’

The chairman of the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), Marco Francis, has said that the main role of the annual Business Awards Mr Francis speaking at the awards ceremony on Saturdayceremony is to acknowledge entrepreneurship, the hard work that businessmen do in Seychelles and to get some role models for young people who want to enter the business world.

Mr Francis was speaking in an interview with the press after this year’s awards ceremony held last weekend at the Eden Bleu Hotel on Eden Island.

The event is to honour the best businessman or entrepreneur in categories like tourism establishment, retail services, artisanal, manufacturing, product innovation, banking and financial services, environmental sustainability, lifetime achievement, corporate social responsibility and young entrepreneurs. The most coveted award however is the entrepreneur of the year title which this year went to Gregory Albert of the United Concrete Products Seychelles (UCPS).

In the following interview Mr Francis explains in more details what the ceremony is about and its importance to the business community.

Press: Mr Francis can you explain to us the importance of the event?

Marco Francis: The award tonight is like a national event. We have to acknowledge entrepreneurship, the hard work that businessmen do in Seychelles. Don’t forget entrepreneurs invest their money in Seychelles. He could have used all his money but as he has confidence in the Seychelles economy, he invests. When he invests he provides good service to the consumers and to the people of Seychelles, so we have to acknowledge him. This is the first role of the award.

The second one is for us to get some role models. We are talking a lot about young people entering the business world but if Seychelles does not have role models, who will they follow? They cannot follow the British economy for example because it is different. Or the USA’s. They need to follow their own Seychellois who have achieved and have been successful. This award is a platform to showcase what Seychellois have achieved and for the youths to follow in their footsteps.

For example Gregory Albert, a young entrepreneur, has won this year’s entrepreneur of the year award. The youths can check what he has done and will say to themselves, let me follow in his footsteps.

We should also note the young lady who has won the young entrepreneur of the year and MCB who has won best banking services three years in a row. So colleagues who are watching can say: “I would like to win this award next year so I will see what MCB does and I will follow.”

So this is the role of the award, where we acknowledge the achievements of those people and also to get role models for the youths.

Press: How would you describe the business sector now?

Marco Francis: Today we have a very strong and stable economy. We have stability. And today if someone wants to work he will succeed.

I have just come from the Commonwealth Business forum in Malta. Over there they were all talking about Seychelles. That Seychelles has achieved so much economically; how in 2008 we were a country that was bankrupt and today we are a country that is very stable, where our debt is a manageable debt, where the country is flourishing.

They are all looking at Seychelles as a model to follow. I met the tourism minister of Malta. He told me he was looking at Seychelles on sustainable tourism because they have seen what Seychelles has achieved, where we can merge our tourism with the environment.

So today Seychelles is a leader in the world. And if it has become a leader in the world it is because the business sector has worked together through this partnership they have with the government.

Press: You have talked on the Blue economy, on tourism sector, what are the challenges the business sector is facing?

Marco Francis: We will always have challenges. There is no perfect economy. So what we need to do is when faced with these challenges we take action against them very quickly. If we sleep on them people will become frustrated.

What we have agreed with the ministries is that from 2016, as soon as we see a problem, we tackle it as quick as we can. We need to create that ease of doing business. Someone who wants to do business today should do it today and not next year.

Press: Over the years have you noticed that more businesses/entrepreneurs become interested in participating in the award?

Marco Francis: I can tell you today this award has become a national event as mentioned before, because today many businessmen are eager to see if they are nominated. They have not won the award but are very happy to have been nominated because they have stood out among the lot.

Today we have about 7,000 businesses that are registered in Seychelles. But for entrepreneur of the year we got five candidates. The five people have been decided upon by the business community, which has seen that the five have stood out among the lot.

So all of those nominated are winners even if they have not won the award as they are the best. This is why the award is very much loved because it’s the people who decide who gets it.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=247717

New policy to better manage public private partnership projects

23-March-2016
Minister Benstrong addressing guests and delegates at the launch of the new policy document
A new policy which establishes clear guidelines and principles for more efficient management and successful realisation of Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects has been launched officially.
The policy document, which has been developed with financial support from the Investment Climate Facility for Africa (ICFA), was completed and approved by the Cabinet of ministers last year.
The launch on Monday at the Eden Bleu Hotel was through a series of different presentations attended by the Minister for Finance, Trade and the Blue Economy Jean-Paul Adam as well as the Minister for Investment, Entrepreneurship Development and Business Innovation Michael Benstrong, who also addressed everyone present.
Public and private sector officials, chief executives, procurement officers, the chief executive of the ICFA William Asiko, a representative of the African Development Bank (AfDB), which is also providing financial support to Seychelles, Carina Sudgen, among other concerned stakeholders, also attended the ceremony and took part in a subsequent networking session on potential PPPs in the country.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=248844

Over 80 maritime students graduate

• Jadel Labrosse outstanding student Jadel Labrosse has received the president’s cup as the Seychelles Maritime Academy’s (SMA) outstanding student for 2015. This was during the...

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=248985

Providence Industrial Estate
http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=248984

CBS publishes annual report and financial statements for 2015
http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=248980

Comment - For the past 10 years have been writing those who use and abuse our person and environment - it is not bad enough the publication about the Panama papers - somebody is using one of those young adult to set us up/destabilize our environment - the internet is not working and the antisocial - excuse we have posted the above articles here.

STC and Airtel strengthen ties through new service

16-May-2016




Seychelles Trading Company (STC) customers who must be Airtel Money subscribers are guaranteed an instant and secure payment service which can easily be accessed through any type of smartphones.
This has been made possible through a new ‘Airtel Money Tap n Pay’ service aimed at providing a modern mode of payment to clients.
The new service was launched on Saturday at the STC Hypermarket, Bois de Rose Shopping Complex.

http://www.nation.sc/article.html?id=249438