VICTORIA, Seychelles — Chinese Ambassador to Seychelles Lin Nan paid a courtesy call on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Minister Barry Faure at Maison Quéau de Quinssy on Thursday April 9, 2026, with both sides reaffirming the strong and longstanding bilateral relationship between the two countries and reflecting on the positive outcomes of the recent state visit by Vice-President of the People’s Republic of China Han Zheng, during which the Chinese government announced a grant of RMB 100 million, approximately R216,136,798.30, to Seychelles as a demonstration of continued goodwill and support for the country’s development priorities. The meeting reinforced a diplomatic partnership that spans decades and continues to deepen across multiple sectors of national life.
The RMB 100 million grant represents a significant injection of development support for Seychelles at a time when the country is navigating the economic pressures of the Middle East conflict and the resulting disruption to tourism and supply chains. For ordinary Seychellois, closer cooperation with China in areas including food security, energy transition, and capacity building carries concrete implications for long-term economic resilience, job creation, and the country’s ability to manage future shocks.
During the meeting, both sides highlighted the importance of cooperation in food security and energy transition as areas that will contribute towards Seychelles’ sustainable development objectives, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora. The discussions also underscored the value of capacity building and human resource development, with both sides noting that a number of training opportunities in multilateral cooperation will be available for Seychellois citizens in May and June 2026. Additionally, two specialised training programmes, one focused on Agricultural Technology and Innovation and the other on Aid Management and South-South Cooperation, have been tailored specifically to support Seychelles’ national priorities.
Seychelles and China have maintained diplomatic relations for decades, with China providing development assistance and infrastructure support across various sectors, including fisheries, public housing, and civic infrastructure. The visit of Vice-President Han Zheng, which yielded the RMB 100 million grant announcement, represents one of the highest-level bilateral engagements between the two countries in recent years and reflects China’s continued strategic interest in deepening its footprint across Indian Ocean small island developing states.
The meeting concluded with both parties reaffirming their shared commitment to further strengthening the bonds of friendship and cooperation between Seychelles and China, signalling that the bilateral relationship is set to grow in both breadth and depth in the months and years ahead. With cooperation extending from development grants to specialised training and emerging sectors such as clean energy, the partnership provides Seychelles with a significant partnership as it seeks to diversify its economy and strengthen national resilience.
The Chinese government’s RMB 100 million grant is among the largest single bilateral aid commitments to Seychelles in recent years and underlines the strategic importance that China places on its relationship with the archipelago as a trusted Indian Ocean partner.
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