A large number of reefs within the inner granitic islands of the archipelago of Seychelles could be entirely lost, unless concerted action is taken soon to control crown of thorns, warns Dr. Udo Englhardt, the expert on on the management of crown of thorns in a...
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State House
The President is head of state and head of government. He is elected by popular vote for a five-year term of office. The president presides over and appoints the cabinet, subject to the approval of a majority of the legislature. State House is the official residence of the President of Seychelles.
Seychelles adopts a unicameral system of parliament, the National Assembly or Assemblée Nationale. The National Assembly consists of 35 members, 26 of whom are elected directly by popular vote, and the remaining nine seats are appointed proportionally according to the percentage of votes received by each party.
In 1903 the Supreme Court was created. It is the highest trial court and the first court of appeal from all the lower courts and tribunals. The Seychelles Court of Appeal is the court of final appeal in the country.
Secretary of State for Cabinet Affairs is the head of the President’s office and serves as Secretary to the Cabinet. Chief Secretary is the Head of the Civil Service.
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The President visits the school
Until the mid-19th century, there was very little formal education in Seychelles. Roman Catholic and Anglican churches opened mission schools in 1851. In 1944 the government became responsible for education in the country. Brothers of Christian Instruction and Regina Mundi Convent run by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny continued to provide secondary education even after the government took over the responsibility to run the schools.
To alleviate the shortage of quality teachers, the government set up a teacher training college that opened in 1959. The college trained both the teachers who were already in service as well as new entrants to teaching. In 1961 the teacher training course was for one year for primary schools teachers and two years for secondary school teachers.
Education is compulsory up to the age of 16, and free through secondary school until age 18. Students must pay for uniforms, but not for books or tuition. The literacy rate for school-aged children had risen to more than 90 percent by the late 1980s. Much older Seychellois could not read or write, but adult education classes helped raise adult literacy from 60 percent to 85 percent in 1991.
Children first learned to read and write in Creole. Beginning in grade three, English is used as a teaching language in certain subjects. French is introduced in grade six.
Seychelles Polytechnic catered for pre-university studies or other training. In 2009, the University of Seychelles was established. Now there are 175 students based on two campuses. The main campus is situated at Anse Royale and the second campus for the School of Education is located at Mont Fleuri.
Seychelles fisheries
In 1770 French settled in Seychelles and set up plantations using African slaves to produce cotton, sugar, rice, and maize. When the British took control of the island during the Napoleonic wars, they left the French upper class alone. The plantation sector continued without interruption. Even after the British prohibited slavery in 1835, slavery continued in Seychelles and plantations continued to thrive.
When the international airport opened, tourism became a serious industry, basically dividing the economy into plantations and tourism. After this, the plantation economy saw a slow decline and became negligible. After Seychelles became independent in 1976, per capita output expanded to roughly seven times the old near-subsistence level. Economic growth was led by the tourist sector, which employed about 30% of the labor force and provided more than 70% of hard currency earnings, followed by tuna fishing. The government encouraged foreign investment to upgrade hotels and upgrade tourism infrastructure. Seychelles adopted a command economy to sustain growth.
Government has a widespread presence in the economy of the nation. Today the economy of Seychelles is based on fishing, tourism, processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture, and beverages. Agricultural products include cinnamon, sweet potatoes, tapioca, bananas, poultry, and tuna. These products support the locals economically. The main export commodities are frozen and canned fish, copra, cinnamon, and vanilla.
COVID-19 (coronavirus) had a devastating effect on the economy. Tourism declined by more than 60%. Economic growth declined significantly from 3.9% in 2019 to -13.5% in 2020. The fiscal deficit widened to 22.6% in 2020 on account of lower revenues and higher COVID-19-related spending and is projected to be 15.3% in 2021.
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The parish church of St. Francis at Baie Lazare
The main religion in Seychelles is Roman Catholicism, with 82% of the population belonging to this religion. Around 6.4% of the Seychellois are Anglican Christian. Hinduism is followed by 2.4% of the population followed by 1.6% of Islam. No restrictions are imposed on religious worship by any of the denominations, and tax-free status is granted to the religious organizations by the government.
The government of Seychelles allows 15 minutes of religious broadcasting every Friday for the Muslim community. Although there are many mosques around the country, many of the Muslims and mosques are found on the island of Mahe.
Although 6% of the population of Seychelles are Ethnic Indians, only 2.4% are Hindus. A Hindu festival called ‘Taippoosam Kavadi’ is a public holiday in Seychelles.
British efforts to establish Protestantism in the islands during the nineteenth century did not succeed because of the tong French influence.
Mission schools had a virtual monopoly on education until 1944 when the government took over the schools. Sunday masses are well attended, and religious holidays are celebrated throughout the nation both as opportunities for the devout to practice their faith and as social events.
Despite the influence of religion, other beliefs such as witchcraft, magic, superstition, and divination exist in Seychellois culture. It is common to visit a “tonton” – a wizard during illness or with personal problems. The use of talismans is also widespread.
French and English are official languages along with Seychellois Creole, which is a French-based creole language. Seychellois Creole is the most widely spoken native language and de facto the national language of the country. Most business and official meetings are conducted in English and nearly all official websites are in English. National Assembly business is conducted in Creole. But laws are passed and published in English. Almost everyone in the tourism industry speaks English to make traveling across the country easygoing for the visitors.
Seychellois Creole is considered to be a mark of their culture and pride. Even the national anthem ‘Koste Seselwa’ has been penned in this language. The pronunciation of words in Creole is quite similar to that of French but with slight variations owing to the local twist to the nation’s culture and usage.
Seychelles is a cultural melting pot of people from France, India, the UK, China, the Arab world, and other parts of Africa.
Although French occupation was relatively short, French culture has taken a firm footing there.
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