On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Car Hire and Operators Association of Seychelles (SCHOA), Minister Alain St.Ange was offered a gift from the Chairman and Committee of the Association for his continued support for the car hire operators, while Philippe Albert and Keven Parcou – the couple of car hire operators who formed the association 40 years ago – were thanked for their 40 years of involvement in the Seychelles car hire business.
Members of the SCHOA joined together at the Chilli Bar Restaurant at La Louise on Thursday night to celebrate their anniversary. Present for this Car Hire’s Association special evening along witih Alain St.Ange, the Seychelles Minister responsible for Tourism and Culture, were representatives of SACOS and H. Savy Insurance.
When he addressed his invited guests and association members, Vincent Padayachy, the Chairman of the SCHOA, gave a report of the association’s work on behalf of its members. He also used the opportunity to thank the association’s committee members for their total commitment which he says has helped ensure that the association is holding meetings with the ministers of the country’s government as well as the island’s key agencies. “Today, we say firstly thank you to the couple of car hire operators who formed our association 40 years ago. Philippe Albert and Keven Parcou are here with us and were part of the couple of operators who joined together 40 years ago to unite the car hire business of Seychelles. Thank you for being here with us,” said Mr. Padayachy before he detailed out the challenges the association and its members were facing in their work for the Seychelles tourism Industry.
These included the cost for importing car hire vehicles into Seychelles, the ongoing problems of car hire desks at hotel establishments, the practice being undertaken by some hotels to hire a car and then to operate a transfer or taxi service, the practice of offering two cars to hotel managers on a complimentary basis only to ensure preferential treatment, the issue of duty-free chauffeur-driven cars, etc. Mr. Padayachy also used his address to thank Minister Alain St.Ange for being present and for always being ready to work with the Car Hire Association.
When he was invited to address the Car Hire Association’s members, Minister Alain St.Ange said the Ministry of Tourism and Culture remains the facilitator for all tourism-related services and businesses which is why the ministry is managed with an open-door policy. “We realize and we accept that you have some challenges, but it is important to appreciate that some of these challenges are still results of actions of your own colleagues – operators who are part of your association. You cannot continue to undermine your own businesses. Today, as I congratulate you on your 40th anniversary, I want to re-assure you that the Ministry of Tourism and Culture will continue to be a facilitator for your industry. We can also say that we shall support you in your claim to have hotels respect your line of business and to give you all equal opportunities to have car hire desks at tourism establishments,” said Minister St.Ange.
“The issue of cost for vehicles is important that you continue the deliberations with the Minister responsible for Finance. We know that we cannot outprice services that hold our tourism industry together as a car that is not rented because of the charges we are offering does not help increase the yield from our tourism industry,” the Minister said.
Seychelles is a founding member of the International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) . For more information on Seychelles Minister of Tourism and Culture Alain St.Ange, click here.
