(Seychelles News Agency) - The President of Seychelles, Wavel Ramkalawan, will undertake a five-day working visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) starting this weekend, State House said on Friday.

Ramkalawan, who will leave the country on Saturday, will be accompanied by the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde, Ambassador Jean Claude Adrienne, the head of the Seychelles mission based in the United Arab Emirates, and the third Secretary in Foreign Affairs, Jonathan Pool.

The head of state of Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, will return on Thursday December 17.

Diplomatic relations between Seychelles and the UAE were established on December 18 in 1982 and the two countries have ongoing partnerships in several areas which include education, health, housing and renewable energy.

In the health sector, Ramkalawan announced in a Leaders forum in November, that the government of UAE has pledged to finance the construction of a new hospital on La Digue, the third most populated island.

Earlier this year, UAE agreed to fund and help design a drug rehabilitation centre in Seychelles. The cooperation and assistance will include the training of Seychellois personnel who will staff the Rehabilitation Centre once it opens.

The UAE's state-held organisation for economic development aid, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), has also provided financial assistance for social housing projects and renewable energy projects.

During the absence of the President, the Vice-President, Ahmed Afif, will hold the portfolios falling under the President. He will also discharge any function that is required by the President under the Constitution.