Seychelles (2004) | West Bank (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 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 | - |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26.9% (male 10,987; female 10,717)
15-64 years: 66.9% (male 26,380; female 27,731) 65 years and over: 6.2% (male 1,638; female 3,379) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
44.61% (male 478,232; female 454,439) 15-64 years: 51.8% (male 552,661; female 530,230) 65 years and over: 3.59% (male 32,629; female 42,522) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet potatoes, cassava (tapioca), bananas; broiler chickens; tuna fish | olives, citrus, vegetables; beef, dairy products |
Airports | 15 (2003 est.) | 3 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 8
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
total:
3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 7
914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2004 est.) |
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Area | total: 455 sq km
land: 455 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total:
5,860 sq km land: 5,640 sq km water: 220 sq km note: includes West Bank, Latrun Salient, and the northwest quarter of the Dead Sea, but excludes Mt. Scopus; East Jerusalem and Jerusalem No Man's Land are also included only as a means of depicting the entire area occupied by Israel in 1967 |
Area - comparative | 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Delaware |
Background | 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 31 August-2 September 2001. President RENE, who has served since 1977, was re-elected. On 14 April 2004 RENE stepped down and Vice President James MICHEL was sworn in as president. | The Israel-PLO Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements (the DOP), signed in Washington on 13 September 1993, provided for a transitional period not exceeding five years of Palestinian interim self-government in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Under the DOP, Israel agreed to transfer certain powers and responsibilities to the Palestinian Authority, which includes the Palestinian Legislative Council elected in January 1996, as part of interim self-governing arrangements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A transfer of powers and responsibilities for the Gaza Strip and Jericho took place pursuant to the Israel-PLO 4 May 1994 Cairo Agreement on the Gaza Strip and the Jericho Area and in additional areas of the West Bank pursuant to the Israel-PLO 28 September 1995 Interim Agreement, the Israel-PLO 15 January 1997 Protocol Concerning Redeployment in Hebron, the Israel-PLO 23 October 1998 Wye River Memorandum, and the 4 September 1999 Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The DOP provides that Israel will retain responsibility during the transitional period for external security and for internal security and public order of settlements and Israeli citizens. Permanent status is to be determined through direct negotiations, which resumed in September 1999 after a three-year hiatus. An intifadah broke out in September 2000; the resulting widespread violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel's military response, and instability in the Palestinian Authority are undermining progress toward a permanent settlement. |
Birth rate | 16.55 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 35.83 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $338.7 million
expenditures: $323.3 million, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$1.6 billion expenditures: $1.73 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
Capital | Victoria | - |
Climate | tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeast monsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwest monsoon (March to May) | temperate, temperature and precipitation vary with altitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters |
Coastline | 491 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | 18 June 1993 | - |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Seychelles
conventional short form: Seychelles |
conventional long form:
none conventional short form: West Bank |
Currency | Seychelles rupee (SCR) | new Israeli shekel (ILS); Jordanian dinar (JOD) |
Death rate | 6.41 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 4.37 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $213 million (2003 est.) | $108 million (includes Gaza Strip) (1997 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Seychelles; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the Seychelles | - |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Claude Sylvestre MOREL
chancery: 800 Second Avenue, Suite 400C, New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785 FAX: [1] (212) 972-1786 |
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Disputes - international | together with Mauritius, Seychelles claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory) | West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation |
Economic aid - recipient | $16.4 million (1995) | $121 million disbursed (includes Gaza Strip) (2000) |
Economy - overview | 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. Other issues facing the government are the curbing of the budget deficit, including the containment of social welfare costs, and further privatization of public enterprises. Growth slowed in 1998-2002, due to sluggish tourist and tuna sectors. Also, 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 should remain sluggish as vacationers seek cheaper destinations such as Comoros, Mauritius, and Madagascar. | Economic output in the West Bank is governed by the Paris Economic Protocol of April 1994 between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Real per capita GDP for the West Bank and Gaza Strip (WBGS) declined by 36.1% between 1992 and 1996 owing to the combined effect of falling aggregate incomes and rapid population growth. The downturn in economic activity was largely the result of Israeli closure policies - the imposition of border closures in response to security incidents in Israel - which disrupted established labor and commodity market relationships between Israel and the WBGS. The most serious social effect of this downturn was rising unemployment; unemployment in the WBGS during the 1980s was generally under 5%; by 1995 it had risen to over 20%. Since 1997 Israel's use of comprehensive closures has decreased and, in 1998, Israel implemented new policies to reduce the impact of closures and other security procedures on the movement of Palestinian goods and labor. These changes fueled an almost three-year long economic recovery in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; real GDP grew by 5% in 1998 and 6% in 1999. Recovery was upended in the last quarter of 2000 with the outbreak of Palestinian violence, which triggered tight Israeli closures of Palestinian self-rule areas and a severe disruption of trade and labor movements. |
Electricity - consumption | 148.8 million kWh (2001) | NA kWh |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | NA kWh |
Electricity - production | 160 million kWh (2001) | NA kWh; note - most electricity imported from Israel; East Jerusalem Electric Company buys and distributes electricity to Palestinians in East Jerusalem and its concession in the West Bank; the Israel Electric Company directly supplies electricity to most Jewish residents and military facilities; at the same time, some Palestinian municipalities, such as Nablus and Janin, generate their own electricity from small power plants |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Morne Seychellois 905 m |
lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Tall Asur 1,022 m |
Environment - current issues | water supply depends on catchments to collect rainwater | adequacy of fresh water supply; sewage treatment |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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Ethnic groups | mixed French, African, Indian, Chinese, and Arab | Palestinian Arab and other 83%, Jewish 17% |
Exchange rates | Seychelles rupees per US dollar - 5.4007 (2003), 5.48 (2002), 5.8575 (2001), 5.7138 (2000), 5.3426 (1999) | new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.0810 (December 2000), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997), 3.1917 (1996); Jordanian dinars per US dollar - fixed rate of 0.7090 (from 1996) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President James MICHEL (since 14 April 2004); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 31 August-2 September 2001 (next to be held NA 2006) election results: 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 |
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Exports | NA (2001) | $682 million (includes Gaza Strip) (f.o.b., 1998 est.) |
Exports - commodities | canned tuna, frozen fish, cinnamon bark, copra, petroleum products (reexports) | olives, fruit, vegetables, limestone |
Exports - partners | UK 38.8%, France 31.8%, Italy 14.5%, Germany 7.5% (2003) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year (since 1 January 1992) |
Flag description | five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist side | - |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $626 million (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3.1 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 28.7% services: 68.9% (2003) |
agriculture:
9% industry: 28% services: 63% note: includes Gaza Strip (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $7,800 (2002 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.5% (2002 est.) | -7.5% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 4 35 S, 55 40 E | 32 00 N, 35 15 E |
Geography - note | 40 granitic and about 50 coralline islands | landlocked; highlands are main recharge area for Israel's coastal aquifers; there are 231 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank and 29 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) |
Highways | total: 373 km
paved: 315 km unpaved: 58 km (1997 est.) |
total:
4,500 km paved: 2,700 km unpaved: 1,800 km (1997 est.) note: Israelis have developed many highways to service Jewish settlements |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | NA (2001) | $2.5 billion (includes Gaza Strip) (c.i.f., 1998 est.) |
Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals | food, consumer goods, construction materials |
Imports - partners | Saudi Arabia 15.7%, South Africa 10.9%, Spain 10.4%, France 9.7%, Italy 9.2%, Singapore 7%, UK 6.8% (2003) | Israel, Jordan, Gaza Strip |
Independence | 29 June 1976 (from UK) | - |
Industrial production growth rate | NA | NA% |
Industries | fishing; tourism; processing of coconuts and vanilla, coir (coconut fiber) rope, boat building, printing, furniture; beverages | generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale, modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers |
Infant mortality rate | total: 15.97 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 11.61 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
21.78 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2003 est.) | 3% (includes Gaza Strip) (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | 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, WTrO (observer) | - |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 8 (1999) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal; Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president | - |
Labor force | 30,900 (1996) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 19%, services 71% (1989) | services 66%, industry 21%, agriculture 13% (1996) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total:
404 km border countries: Israel 307 km, Jordan 97 km |
Land use | arable land: 2.22%
permanent crops: 13.33% other: 84.45% (2001) |
arable land:
27% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 32% forests and woodland: 1% other: 40% |
Languages | English (official), French (official), Creole | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by Israeli settlers and many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
Legal system | based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law | - |
Legislative branch | 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)
elections: last held 4-6 December 2002 (next held by 2007) election results: 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 |
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Life expectancy at birth | total population: 71.53 years
male: 66.1 years female: 77.14 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
72.28 years male: 70.58 years female: 74.07 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 58% male: 56% female: 60% (1971 est.) |
definition:
NA total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Eastern Africa, group of islands in the Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar | Middle East, west of Jordan |
Map references | Africa | Middle East |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 42,223 GRT/63,538 DWT
by type: cargo 4, chemical tanker 3, container 1 foreign-owned: Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Nigeria 1, South Africa 2 (2004 est.) |
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Military branches | Army, Coast Guard (including Navy Wing, Air Wing), National Guard, Presidential Protection Unit (includes Presidential Guard), Seychelles National Police (includes Police Mobile Unit) | NA |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $11.6 million (2003) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.8% (2003) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 23,661 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 11,712 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Constitution Day (National Day), 18 June (1993) | - |
Nationality | noun: Seychellois (singular and plural)
adjective: Seychellois |
noun:
NA adjective: NA |
Natural hazards | lies outside the cyclone belt, so severe storms are rare; short droughts possible | droughts |
Natural resources | fish, copra, cinnamon trees | arable land |
Net migration rate | -5.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 3.29 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Political parties and leaders | 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 | - |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Roman Catholic Church; trade unions | - |
Population | 80,832 (July 2004 est.) | 2,090,713 (July 2001 est.)
note: in addition, there are some 176,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank and about 173,000 in East Jerusalem (August 1999 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.45% (2004 est.) | 3.48% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Victoria | none |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 1, FM 0, shortwave 0
note: the Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts from an AM station in Ramallah on 675 kHz; numerous local, private stations are reported to be in operation (2000) |
Radios | - | NA; note - most Palestinian households have radios (1999) |
Railways | - | 0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic 86.6%, Anglican 6.8%, other Christian 2.5%, other 4.1% | Muslim 75% (predominantly Sunni), Jewish 17%, Christian and other 8% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.49 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.77 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 17 years of age; universal | - |
Telephone system | general assessment: effective system
domestic: radiotelephone communications between islands in the archipelago international: country code - 248; direct radiotelephone communications with adjacent island countries and African coastal countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: NA note: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for communication services in the West Bank |
Telephones - main lines in use | 21,700 (2002) | 95,729 (total for West Bank and Gaza Strip) (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 54,500 (2003) | NA |
Television broadcast stations | 2 (plus 9 repeaters) (1997) | NA |
Terrain | Mahe Group is granitic, narrow coastal strip, rocky, hilly; others are coral, flat, elevated reefs | mostly rugged dissected upland, some vegetation in west, but barren in east |
Total fertility rate | 1.77 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 4.9 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | NA | 40% (includes Gaza Strip) (yearend 2000) |
Waterways | - | none |