A week-long series of activities were organised by the Seychelles National Museums for all ages to celebrate the 2023 International Museum Day under the theme "Museums, Sustainability and Well-being."

The International Museum Day was established by the International Council of Museums (ICOM) in 1977. Celebrated on May 18, International Museum Day is aimed at increasing public awareness of the role of museums in the development of society.

Every year, museums are invited organise activities to commemorate the International Museum Day and promote museums' role worldwide, creating unique, free, and fun activities around the theme chosen that are discussed within the community of ICOM specifically for this special day.

The director of National Museums in Seychelles, Beryl Ondiek, told SNA that local museums held public speaking competitions for school children and hosted restoration work at the Tea Tavern located at Morne Blanc during the week-long celebration. 

"This year, when we speak of sustainability and well-being, we thought of having activities for primary and secondary school children as they are the next generation so that they can learn about the heritage and history as well as see what they already know. We want our school children to be concerned about and to learn more about our heritage. This is why we invited them to the museum to learn more and then go forth to share it with the public or an audience," said Ondiek.

Local museums held public speaking competitions for school children. (National Museums in Seychelles) Photo License: CC-BY

She said that "We have a restoration programme through which we are contributing within this biodiversity space that is being protected. As the custodians of our heritage, why don't we go out and protect this natural heritage that we have?"

During the museum day programme, the public had free access to the National Museum of History and were entertained by live traditional music.

"Through free access to the museum, we were encouraging the public to visit the museum to learn about their heritage and history," she shared.

Ondiek outlined that though more activities were intensely organised around International Museum Day itself, there are other educational programmes that take place throughout the year. These activities target both children and adults. 

"We have a variety of activities planned until December. In June for the International Day of the Environment, for example, we will be hosting a symposium to see how we can help to reduce the amount of waste that is ending in the landfill. The museum is the platform that we can use to deal with topics that are of concern to the government, society, or the public. We can come together to find a solution for these issues," said Ondiek.