Two experts from UNESCO, Ms. Avril Joffe and Mr. Lloyd Stanbury, have completed a three-week mission in Seychelles as part of the UNESCO Technical Assistance Mission for the promotion and development of the Creative Industries, which forms part of the requirement of the UNESCO Convention on the Promotion and Protection of Cultural Diversity and Expressions, ratified by the government of Seychelles in 2005.

Following their initial fact-finding mission in January, Ms. Joffe, who has been developing a Creative Industries Policy for Seychelles, and Mr. Lloyd Stanbury, who has drafted an Implementation Strategy for the Development of the Music Industry, met with the Seychelles new Minister for Tourism and Culture, Mr. Alain St.Ange, at the end of the 2-day workshop organized by the Cultural Policy Analysis and Research Unit in the Culture Department, with the assistance of the National Arts Council of Seychelles, both in the Ministry of Tourism and Culture.

The workshops were attended by artists, designers, as well as representatives from the Departments of Tourism and Culture, as well as a few partners and stakeholders, in order to validate both the Policy and the Music Development Strategy, before its approval by the Cabinet of Ministers.

Following an initial situational analysis on the current state of the creative industries conducted in October - November 2011 by the Culture Department and the National Arts Council, the policy proposes the creation of a new Seychelles Agency for the Creative Industries, SACI (pronounced “sa ki”), which is expected to propel the creative industries in a new direction, through a board that will be comprised of various important partners and stakeholders, both in government and in the private sector.

The Creative Industries project, coordinated by Mr. Peter Pierre-Louis, was initiated by the former Minister for Culture, Mr. Bernard Shamlaye, in collaboration with Ms. Vibeke Jensen, the Director of the UNESCO Dar-es- Salaam Cluster office, through the UNESCO Culture Sector, Paris, France, who selected Seychelles’ submission as one of three from some 350 applications internationally.

Both the Creative Industries Policy and the Implementation Strategy for Music Development will be coordinated by the Culture Department in collaboration with the National Arts Council, who are responsible for the promotion and development of all artists and artistic creations in Seychelles.