Seychelles: Government

Principal Government Officials

Chief of State: President James Michel
Head of Government: President James Michel

The president is both the chief of state and head of government and is elected by popular vote for a 5-year term. The Council of Ministers serves as a cabinet, and its members are appointed by the president. The unicameral National Assembly has 34 seats--25 elected by popular vote and 9 allocated on a proportional basis to parties winning at least 10% of the vote; members serve 5-year terms. The judicial branch includes a Court of Appeal and Supreme Court; judges for both courts are appointed by the president. The legal system is based on English common law, French civil law, and customary law.

Seychelles has had a multi-party system with the adoption of a new constitution in 1993. Since then, multi-party elections took place in 1993, 1998, 2001, 2006, 2007, and 2008. The Parti Lepep won the presidency and majority in the National Assembly in all of the elections, except for the 2008 by-election that it boycotted.

FOREIGN RELATIONS
Given the threat of piracy in the Indian Ocean region, Seychelles has reached out to the international community for assistance and has significantly strengthened its ties with the United States, the U.K., France, the EU, India, and China. The Government of Seychelles has entered into multiple agreements and memoranda of understanding (MOUs) with various international partners, including the United States, to protect its borders and its tourism and fishing-based economy, which is directly impacted by piracy in the region.

Russia, the United Kingdom, France, India, China, and Cuba maintain embassies in Victoria. Seychelles has an ambassador resident in New York, accredited to the United Nations and to the United States and Canada. It also has resident ambassadors in the United Kingdom, China, France, India, South Africa, the Vatican, and Belgium. In 2010, the Seychelles Government indicated its intent to open a new mission in Cuba.

Seychelles is a member of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Nonaligned Movement (NAM), the African Union (AU), the Commonwealth, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC), La Francophonie (Association of francophone countries), and the UN and some of its specialized and related agencies. The European Union has concluded an interim Economic Partnership Agreement with the Eastern and Southern African region, including Seychelles. Seychelles is also a member of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) group and is closely aligned with SIDS on issues related to climate change and global warming.

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