Seychelles, officially the Republic of Seychelles, is an island country and archipelagic state consisting of 155 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, Victoria, is 1,500 kilometres (800 nautical miles) east of mainland Africa.
Seychelles is divided into twenty-six administrative regions comprising all of the inner islands. Eight of the districts make up the capital of Seychelles and are referred to as Greater Victoria. Another 14 districts are considered the rural part of the main island of Mahé. Two more districts divide the island of Praslin and one covers La Digue as well as satellite and other Inner Islands.
Historical Overview
Seychelles was uninhabited throughout most of recorded history, although simulations of Austronesian migration patterns indicate a good probability that they visited the islands. Tombs visible until 1910 at Anse Lascars on Silhouette Island have also been conjectured to belong to later Maldivian and Arab traders visiting the archipelago. Vasco da Gama and his 4th Portuguese India Armada discovered the Seychelles on 15 March 1503; the first sighting was made by Thomé Lopes aboard Rui Mendes de Brito. Da Gama's ships passed close to an elevated island, probably Silhouette Island, and the following day Desroches Island.
A transit point for trade between Africa and Asia, the islands were said to be occasionally used by pirates until the French began to take control in 1756 when a Stone of Possession was laid on Mahé by Captain Corneille Nicholas Morphey. The islands were named after French politician Jean Moreau de Séchelles, and were formally part of the colony of Isle de France. In August 1770, the French ship Thélémaque under Captain Leblanc Lécore landed 15 white settlers and 13 African and Indian slaves on Ste.
During the French Revolutionary Wars, the Royal Navy frigate HMS Orpheus under Captain Henry Newcombe arrived at Mahé on 16 May 1794. Jean-Baptiste Quéau de Quinssy, the senior administrator in the Seychelles, refused to resist Orpheus and instead successfully negotiated with the British, resulting the islands remaining under French control as "neutral" territory.
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After British forces completed their invasion of Isle de France in December 1810, they assumed control over the Seychelles, which was formalised in the 1814 Treaty of Paris that ended the War of the Sixth Coalition. Seychelles became a separate crown colony from Mauritius in 1903. In 1976, Seychelles gained independence from the United Kingdom as a republic.
Following the coup in 1977, the president always represented the same political party until the October 2020 Seychellois general election, which was historic in that the opposition party won. On 26 October 2020, Wavel Ramkalawan, a 59-year-old Anglican priest, was elected the fifth President of the Republic of Seychelles. Ramkalawan defeated incumbent Danny Faure by 54.9% to 43.5%.
In January 2023, Seychelles announced its final stages of completing its marine spatial plan.
Political Structure
The Seychelles president, who is head of state and head of government, is elected by popular vote for a five-year term of office. The cabinet is presided over and appointed by the president, subject to the approval of a majority of the legislature.
The unicameral Seychellois parliament, the National Assembly or Assemblée Nationale, consists of 35 members, 26 of whom are elected directly by popular vote, while the remaining nine seats are appointed proportionally according to the percentage of votes received by each party. The Supreme Court of Seychelles, created in 1903, is the highest trial court in Seychelles and the first court of appeal from all the lower courts and tribunals.
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Military and International Relations
The military of Seychelles is the Seychelles People's Defence Force which consists of a number of distinct branches: an infantry unit and coast guard, air force and a presidential protection unit. India has played and continues to play a key role in developing the military of Seychelles.
After handing over two SDB Mk5 patrol vessels built by GRSE, the INS Tarasa and INS Tarmugli, to the Seychelles Coast Guard, which were subsequently renamed PS Constant and PS Topaz, India also gifted a Dornier 228 aircraft built by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. India also signed a pact to develop Assumption Island, strategically located in the Indian Ocean, north of Madagascar.
Geography and Climate
An island nation, Seychelles is located in the Somali Sea segment of the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar and about 1,600 km (860 nmi) east of Kenya. The Constitution of Seychelles lists 155 named islands, and a further 7 reclaimed islands have been created subsequent to the publication of the Constitution. The majority of the islands are uninhabited, with many dedicated as nature reserves.
A group of 44 islands (42 granitic and 2 coralline) occupy the shallow waters of the Seychelles Bank and are collectively referred to as the inner islands. The islands have been divided into groups.
There are 42 granitic islands known as the Granitic Seychelles. These are in descending order of size: Mahé, Praslin, Silhouette, La Digue, Curieuse, Félicité, Frégate, Ste. Anne, North, Cerf, Marianne, Grand Sœur, Thérèse, Aride, Conception, Petite Sœur, Cousin, Cousine, Long, Récif, Round (Praslin), Anonyme, Mamelles, Moyenne, Ile aux Vaches Marines, L'Islette, Beacon (Ile Sèche), Cachée, Cocos, Round (Mahé), L'Ilot Frégate, Booby, Chauve Souris (Mahé), Chauve Souris (Praslin), Ile La Fouche, Hodoul, L'Ilot, Rat, Souris, St.
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There are two coral sand cays north of the granitics on the edge of the Seychelles Bank: Denis and Bird.
There are 29 coral islands in the Amirantes group, west of the granitic: Desroches, Poivre Atoll (comprising three islands-Poivre, Florentin and South Island), Alphonse, D'Arros, St. Joseph Atoll (comprising 14 islands-St. Joseph, Île aux Fouquets, Resource, Petit Carcassaye, Grand Carcassaye, Benjamin, Bancs Ferrari, Chiens, Pélicans, Vars, Île Paul, Banc de Sable, Banc aux Cocos and Île aux Poules), Marie Louise, Desnœufs, African Banks (comprising two islands-African Banks and South Island), Rémire, St.
The climate is very humid, as the islands are small, and is classified by the Köppen-Geiger system as a tropical rain forest (Af). The temperature varies little throughout the year. Temperatures on Mahé vary from 24 to 30 °C (75 to 86 °F), and rainfall ranges from 2,900 mm (114 in) annually at Victoria to 3,600 mm (142 in) on the mountain slopes.
The southeast trade winds blow regularly from May to November, and this is the most pleasant time of the year. The hot months are from December to April, with higher humidity (80%). March and April are the hottest months, but the temperature seldom exceeds 31 °C (88 °F).
Mahé is the principal island comprising of 142 sq km, with the islands of Praslin, La Digue and Silhouette being the next important . The granite islands rise above the sea surface to form a peak or ridge which, in the case of Mahé, attains an elevation of 3,000 ft at Morne Seychellois, the highest point. Rugged crests, towering cliffs, boulders and domes contribute to the islands great natural beauty. Mahé possesses white sandy beaches which are flats of coral and shell known locally as plateaus, although they rarely achieve an elevation of more than 10 ft above sea level. The coralline Seychelles are, in contrast, low-lying, rising only a few feet above the surface of the sea. Many have the typical Indian Ocean lagoon. Soils tend to be thin with poor moisture retention.
Here's a table summarizing the key geographical facts about the main islands of Seychelles:
| Island | Area (sq km) | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|
| Mahé | 142 | Principal island, Morne Seychellois (highest point) |
| Praslin | - | Important island |
| La Digue | - | Important island |
| Silhouette | - | Important island |
Biodiversity and Conservation
Seychelles is among the world's leading countries to protect lands for threatened species, allocating 42% of its territory for conservation. Like many fragile island ecosystems, Seychelles saw the loss of biodiversity when humans first settled in the area, including the disappearance of most of the giant tortoises from the granitic islands, the felling of coastal and mid-level forests, and the extinction of species such as the chestnut flanked white eye, the Seychelles parakeet, and the saltwater crocodile. However, extinctions were far fewer than on islands such as Mauritius or Hawaii, partly due to a shorter period of human occupation.
Seychelles today is known for success stories in protecting its flora and fauna. The freshwater crab genus Seychellum is endemic to the granitic Seychelles, and a further 26 species of crabs and five species of hermit crabs live on the islands. From the year 1500 until the mid-1800s (approximately), the then-previously unknown Aldabra giant tortoise was killed for food by pirates and sailors, driving their numbers to near-extinction levels. Today, a healthy yet fragile population of 150,000 tortoises live solely on the atoll of Aldabra, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Seychelles Aldabra Giant Tortoises
Additionally, these ancient reptiles can further be found in numerous zoos, botanical gardens, and private collections internationally. Their protection from poaching and smuggling is overseen by CITES, whilst captive breeding has greatly reduced the negative impact on the remaining wild populations.
Seychelles hosts some of the largest seabird colonies in the world, notably on the outer islands of Aldabra and Cosmoledo. In granitic Seychelles the largest colonies are on Aride Island including the world's largest numbers of two species. The sooty tern also breeds on the islands. The granitic islands of Seychelles are home to roughly 268 flowering plant species, of which 70 (28%) are endemic.
Particularly well known is the coco de mer, a species of palm that grows only on the islands of Praslin and neighbouring Curieuse. Sometimes nicknamed the "love nut" (the shape of its "double" coconut resembles buttocks), the coco-de-mer produces the world's heaviest seed. The jellyfish tree is to be found in only a few locations on Mahé. This strange and ancient plant, in a genus of its own, Medusagyne seems to reproduce only in cultivation and not in the wild. Other unique plant species include Wright's gardenia (Rothmannia annae), found only on Aride Island’s Special Reserve. There are several unique species of orchid on the islands.
People and Culture
When the British gained control of the islands during the Napoleonic Wars, they allowed the French upper class to retain their land. Both the French and British settlers used enslaved Africans, and although the British prohibited slavery in 1835, African workers continued to come. The Gran blan ("big whites") of French origin dominated economic and political life. The British administration employed Indians on indentured servitude to the same degree as in Mauritius resulting in a small Indian population.
Today, Seychelles is described as a fusion of peoples and cultures. Numerous Seychellois are considered multiracial: blending from African, Asian and European descent to create a modern creole culture. As the islands of Seychelles had no indigenous population, the current Seychellois descend from people who immigrated, of which the largest ethnic groups were those of African, French, Indian and Chinese origin.
French and English are official languages along with Seychellois Creole, which is a French-based creole language related to those spoken in Mauritius and Reunion. Seychellois Creole is the most widely spoken native language and de facto the national language of the country.
Economy
During the plantation era, cinnamon, vanilla and copra were the chief exports. Since independence in 1976, per capita output 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 labour force, compared to agriculture which today employs about 3% of the labour force. The prime agricultural products currently produced in Seychelles include sweet potatoes, vanilla.
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