Seychelles' capital city Victoria and the city of Grodzisk Mazowiecki in Poland will enhance existing cooperation through a newly signed partnership agreement.  

The agreement, which was signed in a virtual ceremony recently by the acting Mayor of Victoria, Lydia Charie, and Grzegorz Benedykciński, Mayor of Grodzisk Mazowiecki, was initiated by the Polish Embassy in Nairobi.

This is the first-ever partnership agreement between the local governments of Poland and Seychelles, and through it, the two cities recognise their common desire to develop and cultivate stronger cultural, social, and economic ties between the parties and their people.

Through the agreement, both parties will promote and strengthen their bilateral ties to achieve common goals in various areas of cooperation, in several areas. These will be namely economics, trade, science and technology, education, culture, sports, health, tourism, city development and environmental protection.

In her address, Charlie described the signing as an important milestone in the long-standing and multi-faceted partnership between Seychelles and Poland. The two countries established diplomatic relations on February 12, 1979.

She said despite Seychelles and Poland being different and far from each other, the agreement means both parties value those differences that they believe will bring more prosperity to both countries.

"Through this memorandum of understanding, our two cities will aim to develop and cultivate stronger, cultural, social and economic ties through the exchange of best practices, coordination of mutual activities and undertaking of projects deemed beneficial by both parties," she said.

Through their negotiations, the two cities have already identified various areas for collaboration.

The acting mayor added that geographically and historically, Seychelles and Poland are different with one being a small island nation while the other is the fifth-most populous country in Europe and the ninth-largest country in Europe. Despite the differences, they have many things in common.

"I am confident that with the signing of the memorandum of understanding, we will see closer people-to-people ties between the citizens of Victoria and Grodzisk Mazowiecki. We can achieve a higher purpose," she added.

She also commended the joint efforts and hard work of the foreign affairs ministries of both countries, for their meticulous and diligent work in negotiating and concluding this document.