VICTORIA, Seychelles — The Seychelles Coast Guard marked a major milestone in the country’s maritime security on June 29 with the inauguration of a new 150 metre jetty at Ile Perseverance, designed to support the service’s growing fleet of patrol vessels and fast-response boats.
President Patrick Herminie led the official ceremony, accompanied by Chief of Defence Forces Major General Michael Rosette, underscoring the strategic importance of the facility for national defence and day-to-day maritime operations. The inauguration forms part of the government’s wider effort to ensure that Seychelles’ maritime infrastructure keeps pace with the operational demands of an island state that depends on the sea for trade, fisheries and connectivity.
Construction of the jetty began in mid-2025 and was completed in June 2026, following approximately one year of work. The new structure replaces the Coast Guard’s long-serving floating jetty, which had become inadequate for the larger and more modern vessels now part of the fleet. The modern jetty provides safer and more reliable berthing facilities year-round, significantly improving operational efficiency and reducing the maintenance burden associated with the older pontoon arrangement.
The facility is designed to support daily operations, vessel maintenance and future expansion, while accommodating the larger patrol ships that have joined the fleet in recent years. The Seychelles Coast Guard currently operates five patrol ships, one auxiliary vessel and several fast-response boats. These assets are critical in safeguarding the country’s maritime borders, conducting search and rescue missions, combating illegal fishing, responding to emergencies and supporting efforts against piracy, trafficking and other illicit activities at sea.
The Seychelles Coast Guard, established under the Defence Act, sits within the Seychelles Defence Forces and reports to the Chief of Defence Forces. Its operational remit covers an Exclusive Economic Zone of nearly 1.4 million square kilometres in the western Indian Ocean, an area that requires sustained patrol presence to deter illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, narcotics trafficking and other transnational maritime threats. The new jetty directly improves the service’s ability to maintain that presence.
Beyond its military role, the upgraded berthing infrastructure also supports humanitarian work. Coast Guard vessels regularly assist in search and rescue cases, medical evacuations from outer islands and disaster response during tropical cyclones, which have become more frequent in the south-west Indian Ocean. Faster turnaround times at base mean that patrol ships can spend more days at sea and respond more quickly when alerts are raised.
According to a press release from State House, the addition of the new jetty is expected to enhance readiness by enabling quicker vessel deployment and improving logistical support for both routine patrols and emergency operations. Officials at the ceremony said the investment sends a clear signal about the country’s intent to protect its waters and to support regional maritime security cooperation, including joint patrols with partners in the Indian Ocean.
For a service that has historically operated from a constrained footprint, the Ile Perseverance facility represents a generational upgrade. With this investment in place, Seychelles is positioning its Coast Guard to meet the next decade of maritime challenges, from illegal fishing fleets operating further offshore to the growing security implications of climate change on small island developing states.
Sources cited: Seychelles Coast Guard, Wikipedia. State House news, Seychelles. International Maritime Organization, About page. UNODC Maritime Crime programme.
Source: SN
