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Ambassador Domingos de Almeida da Silva Coelho formally presented his credentials to President Herminie at State House, marking the start of his tenure as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Angola to Seychelles.
With Seychelles and Angola approaching the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations, established on 7 November 1986, President Herminie said the accreditation presents an important opportunity to deepen the partnership and move from shared aspirations towards practical, high-level cooperation that delivers tangible benefits for the peoples of both countries.
Discussions following the accreditation focused on strengthening cooperation in trade and investment, tourism, agriculture, aviation, sports, fisheries, ocean governance, energy and information and communications technology.
President Herminie highlighted the General Cooperation Agreement and the Agreement on the Creation of a Bilateral Commission, signed in Seychelles in June 2021, as important mechanisms for advancing relations between the two countries.
He expressed Seychelles’ desire to revitalise the General Cooperation Agreement, particularly in trade, tourism and agriculture, while also calling for the Bilateral Commission to become operational. The President expressed hope that during Ambassador Coelho’s tenure, Seychelles and Angola can convene the inaugural session of the Commission and use it as a platform to advance high-level consultations and practical cooperation.
Air connectivity also featured prominently in the discussions.
President Herminie reiterated Seychelles’ interest in concluding a Bilateral Air Service Agreement with Angola, noting that reliable connectivity could strengthen commercial exchanges, tourism and people-to-people ties. The upcoming International Civil Aviation Organization conference in Montreal in November was identified as an opportunity to advance the agreement.
On tourism, President Herminie welcomed the existing partnership between Seychelles and Angola within the UN Tourism framework and recognised Angola’s ‘green oil’ strategy and progress in aviation. He called for both countries to build on this momentum through greater exchanges of expertise between their tourism sectors.
While acknowledging that bilateral trade remains modest, the President highlighted the significant untapped potential between the two markets. He called for greater use of regional and continental frameworks, including the African Continental Free Trade Area and the Southern African Development Community, to expand trade and investment opportunities and strengthen links between the Seychellois and Angolan business communities.
Sports was also identified as an area with potential for closer cooperation.
Recognising Angola’s experience as a sporting nation, President Herminie proposed formalising cooperation through a Memorandum of Understanding in Sport and Youth. Such an arrangement could provide Seychellois athletes with opportunities for training exchanges.
Ambassador Coelho welcomed the opportunity to represent Angola in Seychelles and expressed his commitment to strengthening the relationship between the two countries during his tenure.
He highlighted the importance of giving greater momentum to existing areas of cooperation and exploring new opportunities that can bring the two countries and their peoples closer together. Ambassador Coelho also expressed Angola’s readiness to work with Seychelles to translate the existing bilateral frameworks into practical cooperation and deepen economic and technical exchanges.
Ambassador Coelho is a seasoned Angolan diplomat with more than three decades of experience in international relations, treaty negotiations and multilateral diplomacy. His career has included extensive experience in legal affairs, political negotiations and consular management across Africa, Europe and international organisations. He is also a former senior officer of the Angolan Armed Forces.
Ambassador Coelho, who is based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, was accompanied at State House by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora, Mr Barry Faure, and officials from the m
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of State House Seychelles.
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