Africa 2000

Republic of the Seychelles

The 86 islands that make up the Republic of the Seychelles have a combined surface area of only 550 square kilometers, earning the Indian Ocean country the status of Africa’s smallest nation.
The Seychelles are found about 3500km off Tanzania’s east coast and 1130 km northeast of Madagascar. It is the eastern most member of the A.U. – in contrast to Senegal, Africa’s most western nation, which was profiled in last week’s Africa 2000. Control of the beautiful islands has switched hands since the second half of the 18th century, with first the French in 1768 and the British in 1794. As of 1814, the Seychelles archipelago was administered by the French as a province of their colony of Mauritius. The Seychelles were considered a full colony in its own right in 1903 and became independent 73 years later in 1976.
The first years of independence were not without hardship and political instability. The first president was overthrown by a 1977 coup organized by socialist leader Albert Rene. It was only in 1993 that a new constitution provided for multi – party politics.
President Albert Rene resigned on April 14, 2004 after 27 years in power. His deputy James Michel became President for 5 years after winning the 2006 elections.
The Seychelles is a very prosperous country. In fact, the small nation’s economic indicators resemble first world figures rather than those of African countries.

Location- In Indian Ocean, 1130 kilometers northeast of Madagascar
Area-455 sq km
Topography-Archipelago of 86 islands, coral and granite
Population-81,541
Distribution – 50% urban
Ethnic Make-up-Seychellois (mix of French African and Asian)
Languages – English, French, Creole (all official), others
Religions –Roman Catholic, Anglican
Capital City – Victoria, pop-25,500
Government Type –Republic
Head of State and Government – President James Michel, since 2004
Currency – Rupee (SCR) 5.42 = $ 1 US
Gross Domestic Product - $ 626 mln
Per Capita GDP -$ 7,800
Economy –Fishing, tourism, coconut, vanilla, boats, bananas
Electricity Production – 210 mln kwh
Literacy – 92%
Life Expectancy – 66.7 male, 77.6 female
Airports – 8
Vehicles –9,000 units
Telephones – 21,400 lines
Radios – 560 per 1000 people
TV sets – 560 per 1000 people
Daily Newspaper Circulation – 214 per 1000.
Internet –20,000 users

Facts and figures are the latest available at time of publication and may not necessarily be the most accurate.

Graceful Rythms

Born in the Seychelles, Grace settled in Australia in 1997 with her family. Grace discovered a passion for music whilst at university and started performing as a backing vocalist with award-winning Seychellois singer songwriter Sonny Morgan and East-Timorese bands, Jah-era and Ramabauk. Ramabauk recorded an album based on traditional East-Timorese music, which was recognised and chosen by UNESCO to be used as promotional material to promote the conservation of East-Timorese culture. Ramabauk was also invited to perform for ABC Radio in a live broadcast from Kulcha, WA. Grace taught herself how to play bass and discovered a talent for songwriting.
In 2000 Grace joined Seychelles Rhythms, a band that existed to promote Seychellois culture as well as to perform for the many community dances that are held over the year. In order to further develop her appreciation and understanding of her cultural roots, Grace began to get formal, traditional dance training from her mother (a former member of the Seychelles National Dance Group) and formed the dance ensemble, Seychelles Cultural Troupe. The groups performed at different festivals in WA to promote the Seychelles music and dance, as well as cultural awareness.
Grace expanded her musical horizons by collaborating with hip-hop/reggae group, Doggpound, using her dance and singing skills as well as her university training as a teacher to develop dance and singing workshops with the group. The group toured all over Australia for four years, performing and working with young people.
In 2003, Grace joined popular live reggae act Raggabeats as a singer/songwriter. Raggabeats performed in venues all over the state, including prestigious support slots for UB40 and Ben Lee, as well as co-writing the song "Jungle Juice", which featured on the bands only official release. Grace began to write and produce songs with the group's bass player/producer James Searle, and in 2006 their song "Mon Ankor Anmourer" was the winner in the world and folk category of the prestigious WAMI (West Australian Music Industry Association) "Song of the Year". Grace and James are now working on Grace's debut album and have formed this new band to promote their music and to further build the reggae and world music scenes in WA.

Annual International Diplomatic
Charity Bazaar is a success

The annual international diplomatic charity bazaar was held on Saturday December 8, 2007, at the Egyptian Embassy. The bazaar, organized by the foreign diplomatic spouses association, aims to enlist the support of the diplomatic corps to aid humanitarian NGO’s in Ethiopia.
According to Mrs. Sophie de Lutio, the Italian Ambassador’s wife and President of the Ambassadors and Heads of Mission Spouses organization, the bazaar was a huge success as it featured more participating countries this year as well as the attendance of First Lady Azeb Mesfin.
The First Lady opened the bazaar officially and visited the stalls of the NGOs and the sponsors.
Mrs. Sophie said that the First Lady’s presence and devotion to share her ideas with members of the association and representatives of various organizations shows the level of recognition their efforts are receiving.
She noted that 60 embassies and international organizations participated this year opposed to last year’s attendance which stood at 55. Though the number of organizations has increased, the attendance of people has been reported to be equivalent to last years – 6,000.
Speaking of the amount of money raised this year, Mrs. Sophie said that the total amount has not been confirmed as such since the association has not collected all of the money pledged by the embassies and international organizations. She, however, speculated that it is going to be much more than last year’s figure of 600,000 birr as the donors have pledged more than they did last year. The money collected will be given out to NGOs engaged in various activities in the country.
The participating organizations presented their national products and commodities. Most of the items presented were cultural clothes, foods and drinks.
The bazaar also had another objective besides charity as it also marked the 80th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Egypt. To this end the Egyptian Ministry of Culture sent the Aswan Folk Troupe to take part in this bazaar. This Troupe had also presented their music at the Ethiopian millennium celebration last September and their performance won the admiration of many. The Russian School also had a colourful and joyous show.  
The Italian Ambassador’s spouse Mrs. Sophie de Lutio, has stated in a recent capital interview that the major objective of this bazaar are to organize a fund raising event in an effort to try to do something to help those in need. She said that the association will try to help small and medium sized NGOs.

Spain hosts art exhibition

An art exhibition was hosted by the Spanish Embassy in Ethiopia at the A.A.U School of Fine Arts and Design on December 12, 2007. More than 25 paintings by Spanish and Latin American artists were displayed at the exhibition. During the exhibition of different panels and images, the artists have conveyed the message that cultural freedom and the right of diversity are tightly intertwined and a fundamental part of human development.
The exhibition opened under the motto “Culture and Development” and targeted to develop cultural ties between Ethiopia and Spain. The exhibition’s opening was presided by the Ambassador of Spain to Ethiopia, mdme Carmen de la Pena, as well as the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Ambassador Mohammud Dirir.
Spain’s Ambassador to Ethiopia stated that the art exhibition is held as a contribution to the Ethiopian millennium celebration and that the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation is well aware of the importance of cultural ties as a part of foreign policy and considers cultural cooperation as a vehicle for exchange and mutual recognition. She also explained that each snapshot constitutes the stance and particular view point of the participants taking part in this debate. The cultural ties between Ethiopia and Spain are strong, the Ambassador added.
Mohammud Dirir, in his speech said that the art exhibition introduces the culture of the two countries and will contribute to strengthening the relations between the peoples of Spain and Ethiopia. He also stated that in addition to the art exhibition, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is currently planning to present cultural and traditional works in Spain