(Seychelles News Agency) - North Island -- a luxury private-island resort in Seychelles -- has won gold at this year’s African Responsible Tourism Awards held last week in South Africa.

The resort scooped the top award in the ‘Best for Aquatic Species & Habitat Conservation’ category.

“This prestigious award comes at a momentous time in North Island’s history. As we celebrate 21 years of luxury sustainable tourism, we could not be more proud to have been recognised for our ongoing commitment to our Noah’s Ark island rehabilitation programme,” said Bruce Simpson, the managing director of North Island.

Simon added that “we will continue to push the boundaries of marine conservation and endeavour to be a role model to others across the world.”

The ceremony of the African Responsible Tourism Awards, which aims at celebrating and inspiring change in the African tourism industry, was held last Wednesday at the World Travel Market Africa in Cape Town, South Africa.

The Africa show, one of the six shows under the World Travel market, was launched in 2014 to bring the benefits and opportunities of the global industry expertise to travel professionals in this region.

North Island, located 27 kilometres north-west of Seychelles' main island of Mahe, was a former colonial plantation. It was bought in 1997 by the South African ecotourism company Wilderness Safaris. The island is now an exclusive eco-tourism resort accessible only by helicopter and regularly patronised by the rich and famous.

Wilderness Safaris, which is seen as Africa’s foremost ecotourism and safari operator, was announced as the overall winner. The company won gold in the ‘Best for Global Goals’ and silver in the ‘Best for Innovation in Water Management’ categories.

The chief executive of the Destination Marketing, Investment and Trade Promotion Agency for the Western Cape Town, (Wesgro) which was the headline sponsor of the awards, said the winners have set an example by helping to promote sustainable tourism.

The chair of the judging panel --Harold Goodwin -- said the judges searched for winners who educate and inspire others, challenging the industry to achieve more.

“In the World Tourism Responsible Tourism Awards, the ambition is simple – use tourism to make better places for people to live in. This also benefits the industry: great places to live are great places to visit,” said Goodwin.