Seychelles is a country located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of East Africa. It has an area of 455 square kilometers and a population of approximately 98,000 people. The ethnic composition of Seychelles is mainly Creole, with other minority groups including French, English, Chinese and Indian. The majority of the population are adherents to Christianity, with around 76% following the religion and the rest being either Hindu or other faiths. Education is compulsory for children up to the age of 16 and the literacy rate is estimated to be around 90%. The official language is Seychellois Creole but there are also many other languages spoken throughout the country such as English, French and German. The capital city Victoria has an estimated population of over 25,000 people making it the largest city in Seychelles. Check hyperrestaurant to learn more about Seychelles in 2009.
Social conditions
The standard of living in Seychelles is one of the highest in Africa. In 2007, only 2 percent of the population was estimated to live in poverty (below US $ 2 per day). Visit AbbreviationFinder to see the definitions of SYC and acronym for Seychelles. Public health has greatly improved and is close to Western European standards.
The diseases common in the tropics are malaria, yellow fever, insomnia and cholera. In contrast, intestinal parasites such as chin worm and inner worm are available. STDs are widely spread. In 1992, the Ministry of Health confirmed the first official case of AIDS. The country is lacking in international statistics on the prevalence of HIV / AIDS, but according to a report from UNAIDS, the number of infected people is still low, although there are signs of increased spread. The most common causes of death are cardiovascular disease, lung disease, diabetes and liver cirrhosis. Alcoholism is a serious problem, and drug abuse – mainly marijuana and heroin – is becoming more common among adolescents. There are 40 hospital beds (2009) and 15 doctors (2004) per 10,000 residents. In 2009, 11 percent of government spending was on health care.
The availability of food is good and the climate healthy. A government program provides cheap housing, loans and land, although it is said to favor the government’s sympathizers. All medical treatment is free of charge. The Social Security Act provides that both employers and employees contribute to a national pension system, which gives employees a modest basic pension at 63 years. Unemployment benefit is paid if any public work such as street sweeping is performed as a consideration or if the person participates in some form of unemployment program.
Women enjoy the same legal, political, economic and social rights as men. However, violence against women continues to be a problem. Society is often described as matriarchal and the mothers are usually unmarried. However, the law requires that fathers help provide for their children. Girls attend primary school to the same extent as boys and in secondary school the girls are in the majority. Of the country’s MPs, 23.5 percent are women. Check to see Seychelles population.
HUMAN AND ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY
Island state of Africa, in the Indian Ocean. The population (81,755 residents at the 2002 census) is made up of Creoles (93 %), with minorities of Europeans, Indians and Chinese. The only important center is the capital Victoria, on the island of Mahé.
The archipelago was affected by the tsunami of December 26, 2004, which caused serious damage to infrastructures (roads, bridges, public services, private properties), estimated at over 30 million dollars. The government has ordered the creation of a warning system in the Indian Ocean and a special fund for natural disasters in the region. The economy of the Seychelles, which from the 1980s to the 2000s had experienced a spectacular expansion, slowed down in the first five years of the 21st century and the growth rate became negative.
The main resources are fishing, manufacturing industry, agriculture, but above all tourism: however the development of less expensive destinations in the area (Maldives, Mauritius) has determined a deceleration of the sector, which however continues to occupy directly and in its related industries, over two thirds of the total workforce. The fishing trend, which has remained dynamic thanks to foreign investors, is different: the tuna canning industry, majority owned by a US company, ranks among the main in the world. With the primary aim of diversifying its economy, the country has embarked on the path of offering off-shore financial services, still without great success.