The tiny island nation of the Seychelles, where the opposition came to power in peaceful elections for the first time since the end of colonialism, is a ray of hope, considering African elections are often stolen by governing parties.
In the most recent polls, including in Uganda, Tanzania and the Ivory Coast, ruling parties and leaders harassed the opposition and suppressed the media, civil society and electoral oversight organisations. On occasion, some even shut down the internet, social media networks and messaging services.
Seychellois politician and Anglican priest Wavel Ramkalawan defeated president Danny Faure in presidential and parliamentary elections in October. Faure’s United Party came to power in a coup a year after Britain granted independence to the Indian Ocean archipelago of 115 small islands in 1976.
The United Party, or United Seychelles, the current name of the Seychelles People’s Progressive Front, was, during the coup, led by Albert René. The United Party introduced multiparty elections in 1993.
It retained power, by virtue of its control of the state, resources and manipulation of the law, long after it introduced multiparty election systems. The United Party was in power for 44 years.
Ramkalawan, the leader of the Linyon Demokratik Seselwa, or Seychelles Democratic Alliance, won 54.9% of the vote to Faure and the United Party’s 43.5%. Ramkalawan’s party also won a majority in the legislature, taking a two-thirds majority of parliament.
It was his seventh attempt to wrest power from the dominant United Party. He lost the 2015 presidential elections by just 200 votes.
After his election victory, Ramkalawan, whose supporters call him “Father”, called for tolerance, civility and a society in which everyone says good morning to each other. That’s certainly uncharacteristic for an African president.
Ramkalawan was a fierce critic of the government’s mismanagement during the United Party’s one-party rule and was accused by the then government of making political statements from the pulpit.
Though press freedom and freedom of association and expression are not as dire as in many African countries, the long years of United Party dominance have inculcated a culture of self-censorship in the country’s media. The government controls Seychelles’s only television channel and its two radio stations. There is one independent radio station. Opponents of government are often ignored by government-owned media.
A 2018 law on access to information exempts public officials from providing information if they impair 'national security', which is often interpreted as almost anything under the sun.
Furthermore, a 2018 law on access to information exempts public officials from providing particulars if they impair “national security”, which is often interpreted as almost anything under the sun. The new president needs to scrap this law, which, in reality, restricts access to information as quickly as possible.
Seychelles also has a more vibrant civil society than most African countries, which has survived constant harassment by the former government, a chronic lack of funding and being ignored in official decision-making.
Seychelles’s economy has, like many other African countries which depend on tourism, been devastated by Covid-19, as restrictions on travel worldwide have hit tourism. This sector accounts for about 30% of GDP.
Though Seychelles under the United Party had its fair share of corruption, patronage and inefficiency, the country has been one of the most prudently managed African economies. The economy grew 4.2% a year between 2009 and 2019. Because of Covid-19, GDP is expected to have contracted 15.9% in 2020.
Nevertheless, unemployment is 6.3%, which is still among the lowest in Africa. Seychelles has the highest GDP per capita in Africa, at nearly $17bn (about R250bn) in 2019. Average income in the country is among the highest on the continent. The World Bank has designated Seychelles high-income status.
However, the national statistics agency has warned that the figure may be misleading, as 40% of Seychellois live in poverty because of the combination of low wages, the high cost of living and now the financial crisis caused by Covid-19.
Compared with other African countries, Seychelles has the most gender representative labour market in the public sector, with more than 63.6% of those employed in the public sector being women. More than 44% of members of the national assembly (parliament) are women. However, the private sector lags considerably behind, with men being double the number of women employed.
Ramkalawan can make history, not only at home but also in Africa, by deepening democracy and sustainable development and governing honestly. He faces some serious obstacles.
Tackling the economic impact of Covid-19 is just one of many challenges for the new president. This can only be done through genuine partnership with the private sector and civil society.
The island nation is also deeply affected by climate change. Rising sea levels, warming oceans and increasingly unpredictable rain patterns threaten the islands. They are sinking, corals are dying and sea water is leaching into the water table, destroying agriculture, husbandry and water resources.
The island nation is also deeply affected by climate change. The islands are sinking, corals are dying and sea water is leaching into the water table, destroying agriculture, husbandry and water resources.
To tackle the immediate impact of climate change on the region, Ramkalawan will have to build global alliances, including with multilateral institutions, civil society and business.
Seychelles is battling the world’s worst heroin addiction. Nearly 10% of the country’s workforce is estimated to be addicted to the drug. It has swept the country in the past decade because of the explosion of new trafficking routes that run through East Africa. The drug is taken by old and young, and all social classes. Tackling the heroin addiction crisis will need the participation of all sectors of society. Ramkalawan will have to foster a social pact which includes religious organisations, civil society, the media, educational institutions and all political parties to tackle this scourge, which threatens to undo all the development gains the country has made.
The new president must introduce a system of meritocracy in the public service and clean up nepotism and corruption. This will bring fresh energy, new ideas and confidence, and lift growth that will provide the jobs the country needs.
Nevertheless, Ramkalawan must at all times govern inclusively and involve the United Party, now in opposition, in decision-making. He must also bring in civil society and business as part of inclusive government, and respect press freedom, freedom of expression and association.
Seychelles has, in the past few years, been lobbied by China and India because of its strategic location. Faure, before he left office, struck a deal with the latter to have that country establish a navy base on one of the islands. China would also like to have a navy base in the area.
Immediately after his election, Ramkalawan said he would not recognise the deal signed with India. It is crucial that he strikes strategic deals with major global powers, including the US and EU, which foster local manufacturing, sustainable development and safeguard the environment.
William Gumede is associate professor, School of Governance, at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) and author of South Africa in BRICS (Tafelberg).
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