Celebrating 40 years of nationhood |28 June 2016

Today Seychelles celebrates the 40th anniversary of its independence, the day the country ceased to be a colony of Great Britain. Independence Day on June 29, 1976 was the realisation of a dream of a group of Seychellois men and women who believed the country's destiny was the responsibility of the Seychellois people. The pioneers of the struggle for independence believed that it was the responsibility of Seychellois to ensure that one day all Seychellois would be able to live in dignity. They also believed that we as Seychellois knew what was best for our country, the aspirations of our people, and who were better placed to guide our development.

The road to independence however was not that easy as not all Seychellois at that time had the same belief, and not all of them had the confidence that Seychellois would be able to take the helm and rule their own country.

Today, 40 years on, it is with much pride that we take stock of what the country has achieved as a young nation. It is a time for deep reflection and soul searching and which we should use as a launching pad for the next stage of our development.  As the country celebrates this milestone in our history, Seychelles NATION joins in the celebrations with this special issue and wishes everybody a Happy 40th Independence Anniversary.

It was also on June 29, 1976 that this newspaper got its name NATION and we will bring you a short history of the changes the oldest newspaper in Seychelles has gone through over the years.