nal Assembly or Assemblee
Nationale (33 seats, 22 popularly elected by direct vote, 11 allocated
on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 9 percent of the
vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20-23 July 1993 (next to be held NA 1998)
election results: percent of vote by party - SPPF 82%, DP 15%, UO 3%;
seats by party (elected) - SPPF 21, DP 1; seats by party (awarded) -
SPPF 6, DP 4, UO 1
note: the 11 awarded seats are apportioned according to the share of
each party in the total vote

Judicial branch: Court of Appeal; Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders: ruling party - Seychelles People's
Progressive Front or SPPF [France Albert RENE]; Democratic Party or DP
[Sir James MANCHAM]; United Opposition or UO [Wavel RAMKALAWAN] - a
coalition of the following parties: Seychelles Party or PS [Wavel
RAMKALAWAN], Seychelles Democratic Movement or MSPD[Jacques HONDOUL],
and Seychelles Liberal Party or SLP [Ogilvie BERLOUIS]; New Democratic
Party [Christopher GILL (former member of DP)]

Political pressure groups and leaders: trade unions; Roman Catholic
Church

International organization participation: ACCT, ACP, AfDB, C, ECA,
FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, NAM, OAU, UN, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires ad interim
Claude MOREL
chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of Seychelles to
the United Nations, 820 Second Avenue, Suite 900F, New York, NY 10017
telephone: [1] (212) 972-1785
FAX : [1] (212) 972-1786

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to the
Seychelles

Flag description: five oblique bands of blue (hoist side), yellow,
red, white, and green (bottom) radiating from the bottom of the hoist
side

Economy

Economy - overview: Since independence in 1976, per capita output in
this Indian Ocean archipelago has grown to roughly seven times the old
near-subsistence level, led by the tourist sector, which employs about
30% of the labor force and provides more than 70% of hard currency
earnings. 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 t