Alain St.Ange has confirmed he is a World Tourism Organisation Secretary General Candidate. The Former Seychelles Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine was born on 24 October 1954 on the island of La Digue where he spent much of his youth on his family’s agricultural estate, primarily dedicated to vanilla and coconut plantations, before pursuing his formal education at the Seychelles College in Mahé. He later continued his studies in Hotel Management in Germany and Tourism in France.
Afterwards, St.Ange held several positions in the hospitality field throughout Seychelles, the Channel Islands and Australia, eventually managing key properties in Seychelles and ending his resort management days with the Denis Private Island. In addition to his extensive experience in the hospitality industry, St.Ange’s upbringing led him into politics as his father, Karl St.Ange, was an influential political figure during the early years of Seychelles independence.
In 1979, St.Ange was elected as a Member of the People’s Assembly for the La Digue Constituency for the Seychelles People’s Progressive Front. In 2002, he was elected as a Member of the National Assembly for the Bel Air Constituency for the Seychelles National Party. Following that, he was appointed as the Seychelles Director of Marketing in 2009, and in 2010, promoted to CEO of the Seychelles Tourism Board.
In 2012, St.Ange was elected as the first President of the Indian Ocean Vanilla Islands Regional Organisation, an affiliation comprised of island nations (Seychelles, Mauritius, Reunion, Madagascar, Comoros & Mayotte) within the Indian Ocean, aimed at forming a new tourism destination brand. That same year, he was also named by then Seychelles President, James Michel, as the Minister of Tourism and Culture. In 2013, under his leadership as Minister of Tourism and Culture, the Seychelles candidacy was unanimously approved and elected by the commission of the Africa region (CAF) as member of the Executive Council of the United Nations world Tourism Organization with the term ending in 2017.
As part of his service to Seychelles tourism, St.Ange worked endlessly to establish the tropical island as one of the world’s most attractive and visible travel destinations. Underhisleadership, tourismintheSeychellessawanunprecedentedgrowthofupto 19% ayear.
Throughempowering businessesto licensingand workingto becomea rolemodel insustainability efforts, St.Angewas atenacious andresourceful minister. As adirect resultof hiswork, thecountry hasseen asignificant increasein capitalinvestments fromresorts, hotelsand destinationmanagement companies.
Uponhis resignationto runfor leadershipin theWorld TourismOrganisation, manyprominent figureshave publicly thankedhim forhis exceptionalcontribution tothe promotionand developmentof thearchipelago andannouncedtheirsupport for hiscandidacy, includingSeychellois PresidentDanny Faureand HotelierChristopher Gill.
IfAlain St.Angeattains the positionofSecretaryGeneral, he willbe thefirst African United Nations WTOleader.
St.Ange has received numerous awards and honours, including the Mahatma Gandhi Honour Award (2014) for his work in strengthening Indo-Seychelles relations, a Plaque of Honour from the House of Lords in London (2015), and most recently, the Tourism Eminent Achiever Award in Africa (2015). He has also authored and co-authored several books about Seychelles, including:
Seychelles, What Next? (1991); Seychelles, In Search of Democracy (2005); Seychelles, The Cry of a People (2007); Seychelles, Regatta 2010 (2010); Seychelles, Enters The World of Canival (2011); Seychelles, Remembers Karl St.Ange (2011); Seychelles, The Coco-de-Mer (2012); Seychelles, Festival of the Sea (2012); Seychelles, State House (2013) and Seychelles: Unexpected Treasures (2014).
St.Ange is married to Ginette Michel of Les Mamelles, Mahé and has two daughters, Christine and Michelle.
For more information, please visit the official website of Alain St.Ange
