Wildlife

thumb|upright|An [[Aldabra giant tortoise]]

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 rare Seychelles black parrot, the national bird of the country, is now protected.

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. 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. The granitic islands of Seychelles supports three extant species of Seychelles giant tortoise.

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. Other common birds include cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) and the fairy tern (Gygis alba). More than 1,000 species of fish have been recorded.

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 6 potentially endemic species of orchid living on the islands.

Seychelles is home to two terrestrial ecoregions: Granitic Seychelles forests and Aldabra Island xeric scrub. The country had a 2019 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 10/10, ranking it first globally out of 172 countries.

Environmental issues

Since the use of spearguns and dynamite for fishing was banned through efforts of local conservationists in the 1960s, the wildlife is unafraid of snorkelers and divers. Coral bleaching in 1998 has damaged most reefs, but some reefs show healthy recovery (such as Silhouette Island).

Despite huge disparities across nations, Seychelles claims to have achieved nearly all of its Millennium Development Goals. 17 MDGS and 169 targets have been achieved. Environmental protection is becoming a cultural value.

Their government's Seychelles Climate Guide describes the nation's climate as rainy, with a dry season with an ocean economy in the ocean regions. The Southeast Trades is on the decline but still fairly strong. Reportedly, weather patterns there are becoming less predictable.

Demographics

thumb|upright=1.5|[[Victoria, Seychelles|Victoria, capital and largest city of Seychelles]]

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. The Indians, like a similar minority of Chinese, were generally in the merchant class.

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. Evidence of this blend is also revealed in Seychellois food, incorporating various aspects of French, Chinese, Indian and African cuisine.

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. The median age of the Seychellois is 34 years.

Languages

French and English are official languages along with Seychellois Creole, which is a French-based creole language related to those spoken in Mauritius and Réunion. Seychellois Creole is the most widely spoken native language and de facto the national language of the country. Seychellois Creole is often spoken with English words and phrases mixed in. About 91% of the population are native speakers of Seychellois Creole, 5.1% of English and 0.7% of French.

Religion

According to the 2022 census, most Seychellois are Christians: 61.3% were Catholic, pastorally served by the exempt Diocese of Port Victoria; 5.0% were Anglican and 8.6% follows other sects of Christianity.

Hinduism is the second largest religion, adhered to by more than 5.4% of the population.

Islam is followed by another 1.6% of the population. Other faiths accounted for 1.1% of the population, while a further 5.9% were non-religious or did not specify a religion. The Indian Ocean Tracking Station on Mahé used by the United States' Air Force Satellite Control Network was closed in August 1996 after the Seychelles government attempted to raise the rent to more than $10,000,000 per year.

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. Despite the growth of tourism, farming and fishing continue to employ some people, as do industries that process coconuts and vanilla.

, the main export products are processed fish (60%) and non-fillet frozen fish (22%).

The prime agricultural products currently produced in Seychelles include sweet potatoes, vanilla, coconuts and cinnamon. These products provide much of the economic support of the locals. Frozen and canned fish, copra, cinnamon and vanilla are the main export commodities.

The Seychelles government has prioritised a curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs and further privatisation of public enterprises. The government has a pervasive presence in economic activity, with public enterprises active in petroleum product distribution, banking, imports of basic products, telecommunications and a wide range of other businesses. According to the 2013 Index of Economic Freedom, which measures the degree of limited government, market openness, regulatory efficiency, rule of law, and other factors, economic freedom has been increasing each year since 2010.

The national currency of Seychelles is the Seychellois rupee. Initially tied to a basket of international currencies, it was unpegged and allowed to be devalued and float freely in 2008 on the presumed hopes of attracting further foreign investment in the Seychelles economy.

Seychelles has emerged as the least corrupt country in Africa in the latest Corruption Perception Index report released by Transparency International in January 2020.

Tourism

thumb|left|Beach resort at Seychelles

thumb|right|Aircraft at [[Seychelles International Airport]]

In 1971, with the opening of Seychelles International Airport, tourism became a significant industry, essentially dividing the economy into plantations and tourism. The tourism sector paid better, and the plantation economy could expand only so far. The plantation sector of the economy declined in prominence, and tourism became the primary industry of Seychelles. Consequently, there was a sustained spate of hotel construction throughout almost the entire 1970s which included the opening of Coral Strand Smart Choice, Vista Do Mar and Bougainville Hotel in 1972.

In recent years the government has encouraged foreign direct investment to upgrade its hospitality infrastructure and service sectors. These policy frameworks, championed by the Seychelles Investment Board, have catalyzed significant capital inflows into luxury real estate and integrated resort developments. Central to this growth was the World Bank's Sustainability and Climate Resilience Development Policy Loan—which succeeded earlier structural adjustment programs to strengthen the business environment and fiscal management.

Since then the government has moved to reduce the dependence on tourism by promoting the development of farming, fishing, small-scale manufacturing and most recently the offshore financial sector, through the establishment of the Financial Services Authority and the enactment of several pieces of legislation (such as the International Corporate Service Providers Act, the International Business Companies Act, the Securities Act, the Mutual Funds and Hedge Fund Act, amongst others). In March 2015, Seychelles allocated Assumption Island to be developed by India.

Owing to the effects of COVID-19, Seychelles shut down its borders to international tourism in the year 2020. As the national vaccination programme progressed well, the nation's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Tourism decided to reopen the borders to international tourists on 25 March 2021.

Energy

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Although multinational oil companies have explored the waters around the islands, no oil or gas has been found. In 2005, a deal was signed with US firm Petroquest, giving it exploration rights to about around Constant, Topaz, Farquhar and Coëtivy islands until 2014. Seychelles imports oil from the Persian Gulf in the form of refined petroleum derivatives at the rate of about . oil than is needed for internal uses: this surplus is strategically re-exported as bunker fuel for international shipping and aviation at Port Victoria. There are no refining capacities on the islands. Oil and gas imports, distribution and re-export are the responsibility of Seychelles Petroleum (SEYPEC), while oil exploration is the responsibility of PetroSeychelles, formerly the Seychelles National Oil Company (SNOC).

Culture

Art

A National Art Gallery was inaugurated in 1994 on the occasion of the official opening of the National Cultural Centre, which houses the National Library and National Archives with other offices of the Ministry of Culture. At its inauguration, the Minister of Culture decreed that the exhibition of works of Seychellois artists, painters and sculptors was a testimony to the development of art in Seychelles as a creative form of expression, and provided a view of the state of the country's contemporary art. Painters have traditionally been inspired by Seychelles’ natural features to produce a wide range of works in media ranging from watercolours to oils, acrylics, collages, metals, aluminium, wood, fabrics, gouache, varnishes, recycled materials, pastels, charcoal, embossing, etching, and giclee prints. Local sculptors produce fine works in wood, stone, bronze and cartonnage. There are several art galleries around the island such as the National Gallery in Victoria, the Traditional wooden house galleries Kenwyn House gallery and Kaz Zanana Art Gallery in Victoria, Pagoda Art and Design Gallery in the Seychelles Chinese Culture Centre near the Selwyn Clarke market, and Eden gallery on Eden Island.

Music

Music and dance have always played prominent roles in Seychelles culture and local festivities. Rooted in African, Malagasy and European cultures, music characteristically features drums such as the tambour and tam-tam, and simple string instruments. The violin and guitar are relatively recent foreign imports which play a prominent role in contemporary music.

Among popular dances are the Sega, with hip-swaying and shuffling of the feet, and the Moutya, a dance dating back to the days of slavery, when it was often used to express strong emotions and discontent.

The music of Seychelles is diverse, a reflection of the fusion of cultures through its history. The folk music of the islands incorporates multiple influences in a syncretic fashion. It includes African rhythms, aesthetic and instrumentation, such as the zez and the bom (known in Brazil as berimbau); European contredanse, polka and mazurka; French folk and pop; sega from Mauritius and Réunion; taarab, soukous and other pan-African genres; and Polynesian, Indian and Arcadian music.

Contombley is a popular form of percussion music, as is Moutya, a fusion of native folk rhythms with Kenyan benga. Kontredans, based on European contra dance, is also popular, especially in district and school competitions during the annual Festival Kreol (International Creole Festival). Moutya playing and dancing often occur at beach bazaars. Music is sung in the Seychellois Creole of the French language, and in French and English.

In 2021, the Moutya, a slave trade-era dance, was added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List as a symbol of psychological comfort in its role of resistance against hardship, poverty, servitude and social injustice.

Cuisine

thumb|Cutting open young coconuts for drinking, Seychelles

Staple foods of Seychelles include fish, seafood and shellfish dishes, often accompanied with rice.

Other staples include coconut, breadfruit, mangoes and kordonnyen fish.

  • Chicken dishes, such as chicken curry and coconut milk.
  • Coconut curry
  • Ladob, eaten either as a savoury dish or as a dessert. The dessert version usually consists of ripe plantain and sweet potatoes (but may also include cassava, breadfruit or even corossol), boiled with coconut milk, sugar, nutmeg and vanilla in the form of a pod until the fruit is soft and the sauce is creamy.
  • Vegetables Foreign newspapers and magazines are readily available at most bookshops and newsagents. The papers are published mostly in Seychellois Creole, French and English.

Seychelles' prominent digital newspaper Seychelles News Agency was set to cease its operations completely on 1 January 2025, following the decision of the Seychelles government and National Information Service Agency (NISA) after ten years of news reporting in Seychelles.

The main television and radio network, operated by the Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation, offers locally produced news and discussion programmes in the Seychellois Creole language, between 3 pm and 11:30 pm on weekdays and longer hours on weekends. There are also imported English- and French-language television programmes on Seychellois terrestrial television, and international satellite television has grown rapidly in recent years.

Sports

Seychelles' most popular sport is football, which has significantly grown in popularity in the last decade. In 2015, Seychelles hosted the African Beach Soccer Championship. Ten years later, in May 2025, Seychelles hosted the 2025 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup making it the first ever FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup to be ever held in Africa.

Women

thumb|Miss Seychelles 2008, Elena Angione

Mothers tend to be dominant in the household, controlling most expenditure and looking after children's interests.

LGBT rights

Same-sex sexual activity has been legal since 2016. The bill decriminalising homosexuality was approved in a 14–0 vote. Employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is banned in the Seychelles, making it one of the few African countries to have such protections for LGBT people.

Education

Seychelles has the highest literacy rate of any country in sub-Saharan Africa. According to The World Factbook of the Central Intelligence Agency, as of 2018, 95.9% of the population aged 15 and over can read and write in the Seychelles.

A teacher training college opened in 1959, when the supply of locally trained teachers began to grow, and in short time many new schools were established. Since 1981 a system of free education has been in effect, requiring attendance by all children in grades one to nine, beginning at age six. Ninety-four percent of all children attend primary school.

The literacy rate for school-age children rose to more than 90% by the late 1980s. Many older Seychellois had not been taught to read or write in their childhood; adult education classes helped raise adult literacy from 60% to a claimed 96% in 2020.

There are a total of 68 schools in Seychelles. The public school system consists of 23 crèches, 25 primary schools and 13 secondary schools. They are located on Mahé, Praslin, La Digue and Silhouette. Additionally, there are three private schools: École Française, International School and the independent school. All the private schools are on Mahé, and the International School has a branch on Praslin. There are seven post-secondary (non-tertiary) schools: the Seychelles Polytechnic, School of Advanced Level Studies, Seychelles Tourism Academy, University of Seychelles Education, Seychelles Institute of Technology, Maritime Training Centre, Seychelles Agricultural and Horticultural Training Centre and the National Institute for Health and Social Studies.

The administration launched plans to open a university in an attempt to slow down the brain drain that had occurred. The University of Seychelles, initiated in conjunction with the University of London, opened on 17 September 2009 across three locations and offers qualifications awarded by the University of London. The establishment of the university was intended to expand domestic access to higher education and reduce reliance on overseas study.

Notable people

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  • Kevin Betsy, football coach and former professional footballer.
  • Sandra Esparon – singer and performer
  • Sonia Grandcourt – writer
  • Regina Melanie – writer
  • Laurence Norah – travel photographer, writer, and blogger
  • Jean-Marc Volcy – musician
  • Dr Louis Gaston Labat – physician and pioneer in regional anesthesia

See also

  • Outline of Seychelles
  • Index of Seychelles-related articles
  • Illegal drug trade in Seychelles (highest heroin use per capita in the world)

Notes

References

Government

  • SeyGov, main government portal
  • State House, Office of the President of the Republic of Seychelles
  • Central Bank of Seychelles, on-shore banking and insurance regulator
  • Seychelles Investment Bureau, government agency promoting investment in Seychelles
  • National Bureau of Statistics, government agency responsible for collecting, compiling, analysing and publishing statistical information

Religion

  • GigaCatholic

Folklore

  • Compilation Books of Seychellois fairy tales (In Seychellois Creole)
  • Seychelles Folklore Archive by University of Seychelles

General

  • Seychelles. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
  • Seychelles from UCB Libraries GovPubs
  • Seychelles from BBC News
  • Island Conservation Society, non-profit nature conservation and educational non-governmental organisation
  • Nature Seychelles, scientific/environmental non-governmental nature protection association
  • The Seychelles Nation, the largest circulation local daily newspaper
  • Seychelles Bird Records Committee
  • Seychelles.travel , government tourism portal
  • Tourism Page
  • Air Seychelles , Seychelles national airline
  • ADST interview with U.S. Ambassador to Seychelles David Fischer