A/HRC/48/14 in all settings, including at educational institutions. Seychelles had also established a Child Law Reform Committee to review the existing legal framework and make necessary recommendations for reform. 9. Seychelles was committed to reducing school dropout and continued to make resources available to this end. The delegation acknowledged the need to create incentives to enhance human resources in the education sector, and highlighted the master’s programme in teaching for returning graduates, developed by the University of Seychelles, which would contribute to reducing the country’s dependency on foreign-recruited teaching staff. To stop the spread of COVID-19, the Ministry of Education had introduced learning via online platforms. The Ministry had also slowly resumed face-to-face learning on a scheduled basis to avoid overcrowding at schools. 10. The health sector was of great importance for Seychelles and the Government had invested considerable resources in it, employing an adequate number of qualified health professionals. In 2019, the Ministry of Health had also implemented several regulatory measures to control sugar content in food products, to limit the advertising and sale of alcohol and cigarettes and to promote healthier lifestyles. Throughout the pandemic, the Ministry had ensured continued access to health services and had established various health stations to cater specifically for patients with COVID-19-related symptoms. 11. Since the beginning of its mandate, the new Government had set as one of its priorities the vaccination of the population and the reopening of the country’s borders to relaunch the tourism industry. In January 2021, Seychelles had launched an aggressive vaccination campaign that had included expatriates and non-Seychellois workers in the country, as well as all non-Seychellois mariners on the foreign fishing vessels in the country’s waters and port. 12. Seychelles had made noteworthy improvements to the penitentiary system to enhance the welfare of prisoners. Male and female prisoners at Montagne Posée Prison were housed in separate residential blocks. Additionally, high-risk and low-risk prisoners were kept separate from each other and juveniles were housed in a separate unit. Montagne Posée Prison had a fully functional medical facility, and prisoners requiring medical assistance not available at the prison were given a special referral for care outside the prison. The delegation also noted that Project Phoenix, which allowed prisoners to work outside of prison, continued to be a success, and that over 50 per cent of the inmates were actively engaged in it with the collaboration of different private companies. 13. One of the country’s main achievements since the last review was the setting up of the Seychelles Human Rights Commission. The Government acknowledged that the Commission required significant support for the full realization of its mandate, and was committed to providing the necessary resources to have a national human rights institution that was fully compliant with the principles relating to the status of national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights (the Paris Principles). 14. Seychelles, along with other small island States, was exposed to the effects of climate change, and had undertaken several initiatives in this regard. In 2019, the Government had reviewed the Environment Protection (Ozone) Regulations of 2010 and had worked on numerous pieces of legislation, such as banning, or imposing increased taxes on, products that harmed the environment. Seychelles was developing an ambitious climate action plan and urged the international community to adopt sustainable measures for the preservation of the planet. B. Interactive dialogue and responses by the State under review 15. During the interactive dialogue, 83 delegations made statements. Recommendations made during the dialogue are to be found in section II of the present report. 16. Finland expressed deep appreciation for the engagement of Seychelles in the universal periodic review process. 17. France welcomed the exemplary manner in which Seychelles had held the October 2020 elections, and the significant progress that the country had made in the area of human rights. 3