Nature Seychelles wins Highway Africa award

Nature Seychelles, the leading environmental organisation in the country is a winner at this year’s Highway Africa Digital Journalism Award in South Africa.

Speaking in Grahamstown, where he collected the award, Nature Seychelles’ CEO Dr Nirmal Shah said their achievement is proof that local non-governmental organisations (NGO) should go beyond the limitation of small island states.

“The World Wide Web, gives us the prospect to reach the world and for the world to reach us. Get up and use it,” says Shah.

Nature Seychelles was nominated for spearheading environmental conservation through the internet within the Seychelles and across the Western Indian Ocean shelf, using its website http://www.natureseychelles.org.

The organisation came top in the non-profit category, ahead of African Woman and Child Feature Service, a Nairobi-based media organisation.

The award also recognises the NGO’s effort in encouraging other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to embrace new media technologies for environmental conservation. In addition, Nature Seychelles won for its success in using the youth’s skills and creativity to spread the message of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and the environment on the fragile islands ecosystems within Seychelles.

“The recognition is proof that we are doing a fantastic work in Seychelles. It’s good news for all local conservationists that not everything is doom and gloom, but that we are actually saving birds and involving the children in our effort.”

The Award ceremony is part of the annual Highway Africa conference, the largest annual gathering of African journalists in the world. This rendezvous focuses on debates about journalism and new media.

Seychelles expresses disappointment

The Seychelles Ambassador to the UN, Ronny Jumeau said he's disappointed that small island states and low-lying countries are not urgently getting technologies they need to adapt to the rising sea levels in some areas.

Ambassador Jumeau was speaking at a high level event convened by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, entitled 'The future in our hands: addressing the leadership challenge of climate change.'

"I must express my disappointment that most technology talked about today is aimed at helping the polluters mitigate their emissions, laudable as that may be, with hardly anything being said about technology to help us small island states and low-lying countries adapt to climate change," stated Jumeau.

The UN permanent representative, avowed that he wasn't "rattling another begging bowl," explaining that climate change-related technologies, such as equipments for observation, monitoring, research and setting standards "come at a price which we certainly cannot bear alone."

With time fast ticking, said that he hoped donor countries, organisations and private sector entities with available resources will assist vulnerable states to help themselves.

It is in this contest, that the Presidents of Seychelles, James Michel and Palau, Tommy Esang Remengesau have launched the Sea Level Rise Foundation.

"Together we are mobilising leadership, increasing resources and sharing skills, knowledge, technologies and innovations in a cost-effective and sustainable way that will catalyse action for conservation and sustainable livelihoods on islands and in low-lying areas in the face of climate change," explained Jumeau.

The objective of the foundation is to complement the UN's efforts by prompting global attention and action, including the innovation and transfer of the types of technologies that small island states and low-lying countries need, to address the devastating impact of climate change on their peoples and ecosystems and to help them adapt to new rising sea levels.

Editor’s Note: The projected sea-level rise is due to a revised estimate of the ice melt from glaciers. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Third Assessment Report, published in 2001, projected that the global average sea level would rise by between 9 and 88cm between 1990 and 2100.

New age of environmental protection

The decision by Seychelles' largest telecommunications company to introduce e-top up technology is being hailed as a positive step towards environmental protection.

The Chief Executive of Cable & Wireless Seychelles, Charles Hammond says: "I am sure the service will have a positive impact in Seychelles. Just recently, the President in his National Day address voiced for a cleaner Seychelles, and we are proud to bring this first electronic, environmentally friendly top up service to the people of Seychelles!"

A company's spokesperson says that over a million plastic scratch cards get thrown away after use annually and litter the country.

The service, introduced under the name of 'eTopUp', allows customers to top up their mobile prepaid service electronically, giving them more flexibility in managing their prepaid accounts.

"Customers now can top up with as little as SR10 up to a maximum of SR1000 per transaction, such flexibility has contributed hugely to the success of 'eTopUp' in other Cable & Wireless businesses globally," according to the company's head of Mobile Phone Unit Oliver Fock-Tave.

Although Cable Prepaid customers now have the choice of topping their accounts using 'eTopUp' or scratch card vouchers, the company says it intends to move completely away from vouchers and offer only 'eTopUp' in the future.

"This has been the trend around the world as similar electronic top up systems have proved to be far more beneficial to all concerned," concluded Fock-Tave.