Africa-Press – Seychelles. As part of his support visit to educational institutions, the Minister for Education, Dr Justin Valentin, yesterday morning conducted a visit to the Youth Hostel at Anse Royale.
Minister Valentin was accompanied on his visit by senior officials from the ministry as well as by some members of the National Assembly, namely Honourable Churchill Gill, the United Seychelles (US) elected representative for Baie Ste Anne Praslin; Honourable Wavel Woodcock, the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa (LDS) elected representative for Grand Anse Praslin; Honourable Doyace Porice, the LDS proportionate member for Praslin; Honourable Sylviane Lemiel, the US elected member for Anse Royale and Honourable Flory Larue, the LDS proportionate member for Anse Royale.
Pamilla Henriette, the district administrator for Anse Royale was also present.
Honourable Rocky Uranie, the elected member for the inner islands, was not present for the visit.
The main purpose of the visit was for the minister and stakeholders to look at the campus and at the infrastructure, including listening to the various concerns raised by staff and students, so as to start the process of re-conceptualisation of the Youth Hostel.
“We want to give students a small home away from their homes,” said Minister Valentin after the guided tour of the hostel’s facilities by the director, Roger Alphonse.
It is to ne noted that last week by the members of the Media, Youth, Sports and Culture Committee (MYSCC) of the National Assembly chaired by Hon. Woodcock visited the hostel and among the challenges and constraints raised by the management and students’ council to MYSCC were the need for a new salary package for the staff, additional staffing, adequate financial assistance to improve the infrastructure and the living facilities to make it more conducive and more reflective of a home for the students, a proper way to do laundry, increment in students’ allowances, a recreation area for students to meet and to socialise, a study and IT centre and access to WiFi.
Minister Valentin stated that the visit yesterday morning was not in response to the visit made earlier by the MYSCC as he had visited the hostel before and he had known of the challenges and constraints and the visit to include the National Assembly members from Praslin and La Digue and the others, was planned for yesterday.
He added that the visit will be followed by meetings with the stakeholders for the conceptualisation of the Youth Hostel, probably to that of a university campus among other modern design living campus.
It was also revealed during the visit that Mr Alphonse and his staff were not on the payroll of the Ministry of Education as he (Mr Alphonse) was since 2010 outsourced by the ministry to run the hostel and which he had been doing at a loss.
Both Hon. Gill and Hon. Woodcock said that they appreciated the visit which has resulted into the re-conceptualisation of the hostel for the comfort of students coming from Praslin and La Digue.
Minister Valentin said that while the re-conceptualisation process is being worked on, the ministry will be attending to the minor challenges where possible.
He also called on the community, especially the business community, to help the hostel in assisting the students.
He also invited them to visit the hostel and to see what kind of help they may be able to offer to embellish the place to improve the lives and comfort of the students.
Apart from the two office blocks, the Youth Hostel has six separate dormitories of four by two per student bedroom apartments for boys and girls.
There are 87 girls and 57 boys staying at the hostel at the moment.
The accompanying photographs show Minister Valentin and his delegation during the visit at the Youth Hostel yesterday.
For More News And Analysis About Seychelles Follow Africa-Press
