STATISTICS: SEYCHELLES

Seychelles Official name: Repiblik Sesel (Creole); Republic of Seychelles (English); Rpublique des Seychelles (French). Form of government: multiparty republic with one legislative house (National Assembly ). Head of state and government: President. Capital: Victoria. Official languages: none{1}. Official religion: none. Monetary unit: 1 Seychelles rupee (SR) = 100 cents; valuation (Sept. 25, 1998) 1 U.S.$ = SR 5.27; 1 = SR 8.97. Demography Population (1998): 79,400. Density (1998): persons per sq mi 451.1, persons per sq km 174.5. Urban-rural (1990): urban 59.3%; rural 40.7%. Sex distribution (1997): male 48.37%; female 51.63%. Age breakdown (1997): under 15, 30.2%; 15-29, 31.1%; 30-44, 21.9%; 45-59, 8.2%; 60-74, 6.0%; 75 and over, 2.6%. Population projection: (2000) 82,000; (2010) 94,400. Doubling time: 47 years. Ethnic composition (1983): Seychellois Creole (mixture of Asian, African, and European) 89.1%; Indian 4.7%; Malagasy 3.1%; Chinese 1.6%; English 1.5%. Religious affiliation (1996): Roman Catholic 86.6%; other Christian (mostly Anglican) 9.3%; Hindu 1.3%; other 2.8%. Major city (1993): Victoria 25,000. Vital statistics Birth rate per 1,000 population (1997): 20.0 (world avg. 25.0); (1993) legitimate 21.6%; illegitimate 78.4%. Death rate per 1,000 population (1997): 7.0 (world avg. 9.3). Natural increase rate per 1,000 population (1997): 13.0 (world avg. 15.7). Total fertility rate (avg. births per childbearing woman; 1997): 2.0. Marriage rate per 1,000 population (1993): 11.3. Divorce rate per 1,000 population (1993): 1.1. Life expectancy at birth (1997): male 65.7 years; female 75.6 years. Major causes of death per 100,000 population (1993): diseases of the circulatory system 239.4, of which cerebrovascular disease 72.0; malignant neoplasms (cancers) 141.2; diseases of the respiratory system 87.2, of which pneumonia 23.5; infectious and parasitic diseases 49.8; diseases of the digestive system 47.1; accidents and adverse effects 45.7. National economy Budget (1997). Revenue: SR 1,377,900,000 (customs taxes and duties 40.9%, dividends and interest 10.8%, business taxes 10.6%, transfers from Social Security Fund 7.3%, administrative fees 7.0%, fees and fines 4.1%, grants 2.9%). Expenditures: SR 1,363,100,000 (debt service 18.6%, capital projects 11.0%, education 10.6%, health 8.6%, social security 7.3%, tourism and transport 6.7%, defense 3.7%). Tourism (1996): receipts from visitors SR 531,400,000; expenditures by nationals abroad U.S.$24,000,000{2}. Land use (1994): forested 11.1%; agricultural and under permanent cultivation 15.6%; built-on, wasteland, and other 73.3%. Gross national product (1996): U.S.$526,000,000 (U.S.$6,850 per capita). Production (metric tons except as noted). Agriculture, forestry, fishing (1997): coconuts 3,600, bananas 1,850, copra 1,000{3}, cinnamon 650, tea 250; livestock (number of live animals) 18,200 pigs, 4,900 goats, 2,100 cattle, 540,000 chickens; fish catch (1996) 4,508, of which (1989) jack 36.9%, snapper 20.8%, mackerel 6.7%, kawakawa 5.3%. Mining and quarrying (1994): guano 5,000. Manufacturing (1996): canned tuna 12,708; soft drinks 78,520 hectolitres; beer and stout 63,650 hectolitres; cigarettes 62,000,000 units. Energy production (consumption): electricity (kW-hr; 1994) 126,000,000 (126,000,000); coal, none (n.a.); crude petroleum, none (n.a.); petroleum products (metric tons; 1994) none (55,000); natural gas, none (n.a.). Population economically active (1993): total 28,100; activity rate of total population 38.9% (participation rates: ages 15-64 74.3%; female 42.5%; unemployed 11.5%). Public debt (external, outstanding; 1996): U.S.$138,100,000. Household income and expenditure. Average household size (1987) 4.5; average annual income per household (1978) SR 18,480 (U.S.$2,658); sources of income: wages and salaries 77.2%, self-employment 3.8%, transfer payments 3.2%; expenditure (1991-92): food and beverages 47.6%, housing 15.1%, clothing and footwear 8.6%, transportation 8.0%, energy and water 7.4%, recreation 6.7%, household and personal goods 6.6%. Foreign trade Imports (1996): SR 1,882,419,000 (machinery and transport equipment 44.7%, of which aircraft and spare parts 24.6%, electrical machinery 7.9%, nuclear reactors, boilers, and other heavy machinery 6.9%; manufactured goods 18.7%, of which metal manufactures 5.0%, paper and wood products 3.6%; food, beverages, and tobacco 18.3%; mineral fuels [including petroleum], lubricants, and related materials 11.2%; chemicals 4.8%). Major import sources: United States 26.5%; United Kingdom 11.3%; Yemen 10.6%; South Africa 10.4%; Singapore 9.2%; France 7.0%; Italy 3.6%; India 2.4%; Japan 2.2%; Germany 2.1%; Spain 1.8%; Thailand 1.8%; The Netherlands 1.3%. Exports (1996): SR 693,744,000{4} (canned tuna 24.5%; petroleum products 21.8%{5}; other fish, including dried shark fins 2.1%; frozen prawns 1.6%; cinnamon bark 0.7%). Major export destinations (1995){6}: China 15.0%; United Kingdom 12.4%; Thailand 11.5%; India 3.5%; Germany 2.6%; United States 1.8%; Japan 1.8%. Transport Transport. Railroads: none. Roads (1996): total length 214 mi, 345 km (paved 80%). Vehicles (1995): passenger cars 5,100; trucks and buses 2,000. Merchant marine (1992): vessels (100 gross tons and over) 9; total deadweight tonnage 3,337. Air transport (1996): passenger arrivals 151,000, passenger departures 151,000; metric ton cargo unloaded 3,390, metric ton cargo loaded 1,112; airports (1997) with scheduled flights 2. Education and health Educational attainment (1987). Percentage of population age 12 and over having: no formal schooling 7.8%; primary education 51.5%; some secondary 12.2%; complete secondary 13.4%; vocational 9.9%; postsecondary 3.1%; unspecified 2.1%. Literacy (1987): total population age 15 and over literate 37,984 (84.2%); males literate 18,427 (82.9%); females literate 19,557 (85.7%). Health{7} (1996): physicians 84 (1 per 906 persons); hospital beds 414 (1 per 184 persons); infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births (1997) 17.0. Food (1995): daily per capita caloric intake 2,428 (vegetable products 83%, animal products 17%); 104% of FAO recommended minimum requirement. Military Total active duty personnel (1997): 400{8}. Military expenditure as percentage of GNP (1995): 3.9% (world 2.8%); per capita expenditure U.S.$192. {1} Creole, English, and French are all national languages per 1993 constitution. {2} 1995. {3} 1993. {4} Includes SR 488,711,000 of reexports. {5} Items reexported. {6} Domestic export only. {7} Physicians and hospital beds in government hospitals only. {8} All services form part of the army.