Location: Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar

Geographic coordinates: 4 35 S, 55 40 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 491 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May)

Terrain: Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point : Morne Seychellois 905 m

Natural resources: fish, copra, cinnamon trees

Land use:
arable land: 2%
permanent crops: 13%
permanent pastures: NA%
forests and woodland: 11%
other: 74% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible

Environment - current issues: water supply depends on catchments to collect rain water

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Desertification

Geography - note: 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands

Population: 80,098 (July 2002 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 27.8% (male 11,238; female 11,002)
15-64 years: 66% (male 25,763; female 27,086)
65 years and over:6.2% (male 1,667; female 3,342) (2002 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.47% (2002 est.)

Birth rate: 17.27 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Death rate: 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Net migration rate: -5.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
15-64 years:0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over :0.5 male(s)/female
total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 16.86 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population : 70.97 years
male: 65.48 years
female: 76.63 years (2002 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.81 children born/woman (2002 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychelles

Ethnic groups: Seychellois (mixture of Asians, Africans, Europeans)

Religions:Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1%

Languages: English (official), French (official), Creole

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 58%
male: 56%
female: 60% (1971 est.)

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles

Data code: SE

Government type: republic

National capital: Victoria

Administrative divisions: 23 administrative districts; Anse aux Pins, Anse Boileau, Anse Etoile, Anse Louis, Anse Royale, Baie Lazare, Baie Sainte Anne, Beau Vallon, Bel Air, Bel Ombre, Cascade, Glacis, Grand' Anse (on Mahe Island), Grand' Anse (on Praslin Island), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe Larue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka

Independence: 29 June 1976 (from UK)

National holiday: National Day, 18 June (1993) (adoption of new constitution)

Constitution: 18 June 1993

Legal system: based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law

Suffrage: 17 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President France Albert RENE (since 5 June 1977); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006)
election results : France Albert RENE reelected president; percent of vote - France Albert RENE (SPPF) 54.19%, Wavel RAMKALAWAN (UO) 44.95%, Philippe BOULLE 0.86%; note - the first time that presidential elections have been held separately from legislative elections

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (34 seats - 25 elected by popular vote, 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10 % of the vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20-22 March 1998 (next to be held by 2003)
election results: ppercent of vote by party - SPPF 61.7%, UO 26.1%, DP 12.1%; seats by party - SPPF 30, UO 3, DP 1
note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote

Judicial branch: Court of Appeal; Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE] - the governing party

Political pressure groups and leaders: trade unions; Roman Catholic Church

International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Claude Sylvestre MOREL
chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of Seychelles to the United Nations, 820 Second Avenue, Suite 900F, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785
FAX : [1] (212) 972-1786

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles

Flag description: five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side

Economy - overview: Since independence in 1976, per capita output in this Indian Ocean archipelago has expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Growth has been led by the tourist sector, which employs about 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings, and by tuna fishing. In recent years the government has encouraged foreign investment in order to upgrade hotels and other services. At the same time, the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, and small-scale manufacturing. The vulnerability of the tourist sector was illustrated by the sharp drop in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs, and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2001, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Also, tight controls on exchange rates and the scarcity of foreign exchange have impaired short-term economic prospects. The black market value of the Seychelles rupee is half the official exchange rate; without a devaluation of the currency the tourist sector should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $605 million (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 1.5% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,600 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture : 3.1%
industry: 26.3%
services: 70.6% (1999)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 6.1% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
total:30,900 (1996)
by occupation:industry 19%, services 71%, agriculture 10% (1989)

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget:
revenues:$249 million
expenditures: $262 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.)

Industries: tourism; fishing; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages

Industrial production growth rate: 4% (1992)

Electricity - capacity: 33,000 kW (1995)

Electricity - production: 160 million kWh (2000)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 148.8 million kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fishing (expansion under way)

Exports:
total value: $182.6 million (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities: fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (re-exports)
partners : UK 48.1%, Italy 23.1%, France 14.8%, Netherlands 2.7% (1999)

Imports:
total value: $360.2 million (f.o.b., 2001)
commodities: manufactured goods, food, petroleum products, tobacco, beverages, machinery and transportation equipment
partners: Italy 13.3%, South Africa 10.7%, France 9.9%, UK 8.0%, Singapore 7.7% (1999)

Debt - external: $240 million (1999 est.)

Economic aid:
recipient: $16.4 million (1995)

Currency: 1 Seychelles rupee (SCR) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.7458 (January 2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000), 5.3426 (1999), 5.2622 (1998), 5.0263 (1997)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 19,635 (1997)

Telephone system:
domestic : radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago
international: direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios: 42,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997)

Televisions:11,000 (1997)

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total:280 km
paved:176 km
unpaved: 104 km (1997)

Ports and harbors: Victoria

Merchant marine: none

Airports: 14 (2001)

Airports - with paved runways:
total : 7
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m:4
under 914 m: 2 (2001)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total : 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 4 (2001)

Military branches: Army, Coast Guard, Marines, National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit, Police Force

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 23,210 (2002 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males : 11,554 (2002 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $11 million (FY01)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.8% (FY01)

Disputes - international:claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory