Seychelles has produced a first by formally appointing ‘Tourism Ambassadors’ across the world, in a move to boost tourism flows into the country.

This is not only new for Seychelles, but is also the first time that such appointments are made to work alongside overseas tourist offices.

When presenting the move at the official opening ceremony of the 2010 Marketing Meeting in Victoria, Seychelles, the Director of Tourism Marketing, Alain St Ange, said that their overseas offices will now have added support to adequately service the country’s tourism markets.

“Today we are bringing in another new approach, that is, the appointing of Tourism Ambassadors right across the world.  These will be Seychellois living and working in the four corners of the world who have their country at heart.  They will be like consuls, but here only to promote and continuously help develop Seychelles as a tourist destination,” he said.

He reminded the conference of the saying that goes: ‘Once a Seychellois, always a Seychellois’, saying it cannot be more true, and that the appointed men and women will do the country proud as they become ‘foot soldiers’ for the tourism industry.

“I firmly believe that all Seychellois living abroad are natural ambassadors of their country of birth, the country that they love.  It is for this reason that I would today like to initiate the idea of formally appointing Seychellois Tourism Ambassadors: a cadre of hand-picked individuals, well-known in their countries of residence and whose network of contacts and local knowledge will be invaluable tools in promoting Seychelles as a tourism destination across the globe,” he added.

Mr. St Ange said the new ambassadors will provide a sharp tip to promotional efforts, with the ability to access individuals and organizations on their home turf in a way that would not be possible through traditional marketing methods.

When naming the first selected Tourism Ambassadors, he said that the tourism board will continue identifying new recruits as they moved along.

So far, appointments have been made in UK, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Reunion, Russia, Sweden and Czechoslovakia.