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Official Name: Known officially as the Republic of Seychelles, commonly as Seychelles. Known officially as the Republic of Seychelles, commonly as Seychelles.
Capital city: The officially capital of the Seychelles is Victoria, which is located on the north-eastern side of Mahe Island. Victoria is the smallest capital city in Africa.
Location: The Seychelles is located in the Indian Ocean, east of the African mainland and northeast of the island of Madagascar.
Size: The total land area of the Seychelles is 455 square kilometers and is ranked 198th in the global rankings, just ahead of Antigua and Barbuda which has a total land mass of 443 square kilometers.
Climate: The Seychelles has a tropical marine climate, resulting in two monsoon seasons which impact the country slightly differently; the southeast monsoon season from May to September is humid and cooler and from March to May there is a northwest monsoon that is warmer.
Population: The population of the Seychelles was estimated to be 88,340 in 2010, ranking it 196th in the world - making it the lowest populated African state: São Tomé and Príncipe is ranked 186th with a estimated population of 175,808, making it the second lowest African populated country in the continent.
Life Expectancy: The average life expectancy for a Seychellois is 73.28 years. Females have a longer average life span at 78.09 years, while males can average 68.6 years from birth.
Prevalence of HIV/AIDS: There are no reported figures for the prevalence of HIV/AIDS for the Seychelles.
Major Illness: The potential health risks prevailing in the Seychelles are; diarrhea, conjunctivitis, tuberculosis and leptospirosis. The Seychelles has been able to cut down the number of cases of communicable diseases over the last decade.
Ethnic Groups: The major ethnic groups present in the Seychelles are; mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese and Arab.
Languages: The official languages in the Seychelles are Creole 91.8% and English 4.9%; other languages account for 3.1%, with 0.2% unspecified.
Religion: In the Seychelles Roman Catholic is the major religion accounting for 82.3% of the population. The other religions include Anglican 6.4%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.1%, Christian 3.4%, Hindu 2.1%, Muslim 1.1%, with non-Christian 1.5% and unspecified at 1.5%.
Government: The Government in the Seychelles is a Republic. There is a president, who is both head of state and head of government and is elected by popular vote to lead the country. The president will appoint the cabinet who are known as the cabinet of ministers, this is subject to approval from the legislature. The Seychelles gained independence from the British in 1976 and by 1977 a coup led to the country becoming a socialist one political party state. In 1993 the first presidential and parliamentary elections were held and the Seychelles People's Progressive Front (SPPF) came into power.
Military: The Seychelles Defense Force has the following branches; Army, Coastal Guards and National Guard. Seychellois can volunteer to join the military at 18 years of age. However, if they have parental consent they can join before they are 18 years old.
Economy: Since the Seychelles gained independence from the British in 1976, it has been able to develop its economy and become an upper-middle class group country. In the 1970's the country focused on plantation of cinnamon, copra and vanilla, which accounted for approximately a third of the jobs in the country at that time. Presently, the country has a strong tourism industry which accounts for 30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency earnings. The sought after tuna fish, has created a strong fishery industry in the Seychelles, which accounts for a large proportion of jobs and income for the country. The Seychelles is looking to develop for the future by encourage investment in tourism; additionally, it is promoting development of farming, fishing and manufacturing industries to minimize the dependency on the tourism industry, which can be influenced by global factors outside the Seychelles control.
GDP: The Purchasing power parity of the Seychelles is US$ 1.682 billion ranking it 186th globally. Cape Verde has a slightly greater purchasing power parity of US$1,700 billion. In 2009, it was estimated that the economy was hit hard and experienced a real growth rate decline of -8.7%, which reflected the 6th worst performing economy in the world.
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