Though the islands may have been known to Arab traders, they lay undiscovered until chartered by the Portuguese in the early 16th century.

The first recorded landing was by the British East India Company in 1608, but it was the French who first lay claim to the islands in 1756 and settled in 1770. 

At the conclusion of the Napoleonic wars, Mauritius was ceded to Britain together with its dependencies including Seychelles. In 1903, Seychelles became a separate crown colony. The International Airport opened in 1971,  and Seychelles obtained from Britain its independence in 1976.  It has a multi-party democratic constitution, and the current Head of State is President James Michel.

Two hundred million years ago, the super continent of Pangaea united all the world’s land masses. As these slid apart, Pangaea was wrenched into two, with Laurasia to the north and Gondwanaland to the south. Gondwana split in two also and later India and Madagascar separated from Africa. At the apex where these last three land masses met, a fragment of Eden was cast adrift.

These are not just the only granite islands in the world, they are also the oldest islands of any ocean. For all but the tiniest fraction of their history, they lay forgotten and untouched. Now they may be visited and acclaimed by the world for what they are, a unique paradise.

In addition, a string of perfect islands and coral atolls lie beyond the granitic group and form part of Seychelles. These include Aldabra, a world apart, whose reptiles are still the dominant land animal and thousands of turtles come ashore to nest in safety. There is nowhere else to compare with Seychelles.

Copra and cinnamon exports, which were the traditional sources of revenue, have now been largely replaced by the tourism and fishing industries.  Tourism provides today around 50% of the  foreign currency earning for the country and 30% of the government's revenue. Industrial tuna fishing and processing is the second vital sector of the Seychellois economy.  

During the first years after independence, the largest investments have been made in infrastructures and social services, notably in education, health and housing. Recently an International Trade Zone was created for attracting foreign investments. Small manufacturing industries for local needs are also encouraged in order to reduce imports of goods.

You can obtain the national statistics at www.seychelles.net/misdstat.

Over the millions of years that Seychelles lay isolated and undiscovered, a unique flora and fauna evolved. Birds and plants found nowhere else on earth have survived to the modern age and continue to thrive thanks to enlightened attitudes which have resulted in more than 40% of the land mass being set aside as nature reserves, National Parks and protected areas, including the UNESCO world heritage site of the Vallee de Mai, in Praslin.

Seventy-five plants are found in the granite islands and nowhere else on earth with a further forty-two endemic plants confined to the Aldabra Group.

The unique land birds also include many found only in Seychelles including the last flightless bird of the Indian Ocean, the Aldabra Rail and the enigmatic Seychelles Scops Owl, found only on Mahé. Reptiles include by far the world’s largest population of Giant Tortoises. Pristine reefs host a huge range of fish (over 1,000 species recorded), corals and other marine life forms.

Seychelles is the ultimate wildlife paradise.