UNODC Seychelles Centre of Excellence Officially Inaugurated at Ile Perseverance
VICTORIA, Seychelles — The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Seychelles Centre of Excellence was officially inaugurated yesterday at the Military Training and Support Centre (MTSC) auditorium at Ile Perseverance. The ceremony was attended by Minister for Internal Affairs Errol Fonseka, UNODC representatives Adam Loutfi, Toral Vadgama and Lisa Singh, the Global Maritime Crime Programme for Mauritius and Seychelles, and Lieutenant Colonel Archil Mondon of the Seychelles Defence Forces.
Speaking at the inauguration, the UNODC commended Seychelles’ leadership and stated that ‘we are truly pleased to see Seychelles emerge as a rising leader in addressing drug trafficking and organised crime’. The centre has been providing training to officers from across the region, and its establishment as a Centre of Excellence formalises that role and paves the way for further cooperation.
The Centre of Excellence is expected to serve as a regional hub for capacity-building in counter-narcotics, anti-trafficking and organised crime investigations. Officials at the ceremony noted that the centre will allow Seychelles and its partners to expand joint training, share expertise and respond more effectively to maritime and transnational crime in the western Indian Ocean. The inauguration comes at a time when Seychelles is strengthening its position as a key partner in regional security architecture, and reflects the longstanding cooperation between the government and the UNODC on law enforcement capacity.
