]! ^! A lengthy struggle between France and Great Britain for the islands ended in 1814, when they were ceded to the latter. Independence came in 1976. Socialist rule was brought to a close with a new constitution and free elections in 1993. The most recent presidential elections were held in 2001; President RENE, who had served since 1977, was re-elected. In April 2004 RENE stepped down and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president. 
]" ^" archipelago in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar ^# 4 35 S, 55 40 E ^$ Africa ^% `! 455 sq km `" 455 sq km `# 0 sq km ^& 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC ^' 0 km ^( 491 km ^) `$ 12 nm `H 24 nm `I 200 nm `J 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin ^* tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) ^+ Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs ^, `% Indian Ocean 0 m `& Morne Seychellois 905 m ^- fish, copra, cinnamon trees ^. `' 2.22% `( 13.33% `) 84.45% (2001) ^/ NA sq km ^0 lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible ^1 water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater _J `K Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution `L none of the selected agreements ^2 41 granitic and about 75 coralline islands 
]# ^3 81,188 (July 2005 est.) ^4 `* 26.4% (male 10,839/female 10,601) `+ 67.4% (male 26,709/female 28,025) `, 6.2% (male 1,622/female 3,392) (2005 est.) ^5 `! 27.7 years `- 26.62 years `. 28.76 years (2005 est.) ^6 0.43% (2005 est.) ^7 16.22 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^8 6.34 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^9 -5.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^: `/ 1.03 male(s)/female `0 1.02 male(s)/female `+ 0.95 male(s)/female `, 0.48 male(s)/female `1 0.93 male(s)/female (2005 est.) ^; `! 15.53 deaths/1,000 live births `- 19.65 deaths/1,000 live births `. 11.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) ^< `1 71.82 years `- 66.41 years `. 77.4 years (2005 est.) ^= 1.75 children born/woman (2005 est.) ^> NA ^? NA ^@ NA ^A `2 Seychellois (singular and plural) `3 Seychellois ^B mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab ^C Roman Catholic 82.3%, Anglican 6.4%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.1%, other Christian 3.4%, Hindu 2.1%, Muslim 1.1%, other non-Christian 1.5%, unspecified 1.5%, none 0.6% (2002 census) ^D Creole 91.8%, English 4.9% (official), other 3.1%, unspecified 0.2% (2002 census) ^E `M age 15 and over can read and write `1 91.9% `- 91.4% `. 92.3% (2003 est.) 
]$ ^F `4 Republic of Seychelles `5 Seychelles ^H republic ^I Victoria ^J 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), Grand' Anse (on Praslin), La Digue, La Riviere Anglaise, Mont Buxton, Mont Fleuri, Plaisance, Pointe La Rue, Port Glaud, Saint Louis, Takamaka ^K 29 June 1976 (from UK) ^L Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) ^M 18 June 1993 ^N based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law ^O 17 years of age; universal ^P `6 President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government `7 President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government `8 Council of Ministers appointed by the president `9 president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) `: France Albert RENE re-elected 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; France Albert RENE stepped down 14 April 2004 and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president ^Q 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) `9 last held 4-6 December 2002 (next to be held by 2007) `: percent of vote by party - SPPF 54.3%, SNP 42.6%, DP 3.1%; seats by party - SPPF 23, SNP 11 note: the 9 awarded seats are apportioned according to the percentage that each party won of the total vote ^R Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president ^S Democratic Party or DP [James MANCHAM, Daniel BELLE]; Mouvement Seychellois pour la Democratie [Jacques HODOUL]; Seychelles National Party or SNP (formerly the United Opposition or UO) [Wavel RAMKALAWAN]; Seychelles People's Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE, James MICHEL] - the governing party ^T Roman Catholic Church; trade unions ^U ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) ^V `N Ambassador Claude Sylvestre MOREL `O 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 `P [1] (212) 972-1785 `Q [1] (212) 972-1786 ^W the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles ^X five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side 
]% ^Y 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. A sharp drop illustrated the vulnerability of the tourist sector in 1991-92 due largely to the Gulf war, and once again following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. Growth slowed in 1998-2002, and fell in 2003, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors, but resumed in 2004, erasing a persistent budget deficit. 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 may remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. ^Z $626 million (2002 est.) ^[ 1.5% (2004 est.) ^\ purchasing power parity - $7,800 (2002 est.) ^] `; 2.8% `< 28.7% `= 68.9% (2004 est.) ^^ 30,900 (1996) ^_ agriculture 10%, industry 19%, services 71% (1989) ^` NA ^a NA _! `> NA `? NA _" 5% (2004 est.) _P 39.5% of GDP (2004 est.) _# `@ $318.3 million `A $298.5 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) _Q 122.8% of GDP (2004 est.) _$ coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish _% fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages _& NA _' 218 million kWh (2002) _( 202.8 million kWh (2002) _) 0 kWh (2002) _* 0 kWh (2002) _+ 0 bbl/day (2001 est.) _, 4,000 bbl/day (2001 est.) _- NA _. NA _X $-98.42 million (2004 est.) _/ $256.2 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) _0 canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) _1 UK 27.7%, France 15.8%, Spain 12.6%, Japan 8.6%, Italy 7.5%, Germany 5.6% (2004) _2 $393.4 million f.o.b. (2004 est.) _3 machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals _4 Saudi Arabia 15.5%, Spain 13.3%, France 10.3%, Singapore 7%, South Africa 6.8%, Italy 6.7%, UK 4.7% (2004) _Y $70.94 million (2004 est.) _5 $218.1 million (2004 est.) _6 $16.4 million (1995) _7 Seychelles rupee (SCR) _8 Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.5 (2004), 5.4007 (2003), 5.48 (2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000) _9 calendar year 
]& _: 21,700 (2002) _; 54,500 (2003) _< `B effective system `C radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago `D country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) _= AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) _> 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) _? .sc _@ 264 (2003) _A 11,700 (2002) 
]' _B `! 373 km `E 315 km `F 58 km (1997 est.) _C Victoria _K `! 5 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 42,223 GRT/63,538 DWT by type: cargo 1, chemical tanker 3, refrigerated cargo 1 `S 1 (Nigeria 1) (2005) _D 15 (2004 est.) _E `! 8 `G 1 `_ 4 `T 3 (2004 est.) _L `! 7 `_ 3 `T 4 (2004 est.) 
]( _F Seychelles Defense Force: Army, Coast Guard (includes Navy Wing, Air Wing), National Guard (2005) _M 18 years of age (est.); no conscription (2001) _] males age 18-49: 21,612 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 16,122 (2005 est.) _N $12.3 million (2004) _O 1.8% (2004) 
]) _H together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) 