Developing a blue economy, or the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, will be the next frontier for the Seychelles, the country's President Danny Faure told delegates at the fourth Global Business Forum on Africa in Dubai on Thursday.

Faure led a head of state session entitled, "Reforms for a Changing World - Future Priorities", where he highlighted recent reforms and future priorities for the Seychelles. He asserted the country's commitment to fighting corruption and adopting regulatory frameworks. He also said that he hopes to see the Seychelles become "a leader in the domain of transparency and good governance."

The Seychelles' president described the country's private sector as the future engine of growth, and shared his view that the role of government is to facilitate business as opposed to run business.

"We have removed ourselves from a series of business entities that we were operating. We have opened the market and set a proper regulatory framework to encourage investors to come in. We have revamped the taxation policy and continue to have ongoing reforms to bring down the rate of tax to ensure that the business sector thrives," he noted.

In addition, he identified corruption as one of the biggest problems that has hurt Africa's growth, and said more countries should work to promote values of transparency, accountability and good governance. He concluded by stressing the need for African governments to support the next generation of entrepreneurs, and added that "the future is in the hand of small entrepreneurs and we must give them hope."

The Global Business Forum series, launched by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 2013, focuses on Africa, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and Latin America. To date, the series has hosted 10 heads of state, 74 ministers and dignitaries, and 5,400 executives, as well as a host of influential decision makers from 65 countries around the world.

Source: Wam