Seychelles Facts, Seychelles Flag -- National Geographic

Fast Facts

Population:: 81,000
Capital:: Victoria; 25,000
Area:: 455 square kilometers (176 square miles)
Language:: English, French, Creole
Religion:: Roman Catholic, Anglican
Currency:: Seychelles rupee
Life Expectancy:: 70
GDP per Capita:: U.S. $7,800
Literacy Percent:: 58

Some 115 tropical islands form the Republic of Seychelles in the Indian Ocean—independent from Britain since 1976. An international airport opened in 1971 on the largest island, Mahé, increasing tourism, the economic mainstay. An estimated 88 percent of the population live on Mahé. After 15 years of one-party rule, the first elections in the country's history were held in 1993.

ECONOMY

Industry: Fishing, tourism, processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope
Agriculture: Coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes; broiler chickens; tuna fish
Exports: Canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports)

—Text From National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition

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