Food imports (% of merchandise imports) in Seychelles
Seychelles: Food imports (% of merchandise imports) was 26.1% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Food imports in Seychelles, 1971–2024
Source: Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division. Measured in % of merchandise imports.
Analysis
Seychelles recorded 26.1% for food imports in 2024.
That represents a change of up 3.6% on the previous year and up 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, food imports in Seychelles peaked at 33.1% in 1974 and was at its lowest, 9.6%, in 2017.
Seychelles ranks 27th of 196 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 50 years of available data.
Food imports (% of merchandise imports) in Seychelles, year by year
| Year | % of merchandise imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1971 | 28.8% | — |
| 1972 | 24.2% | -16.1% |
| 1973 | 28.1% | +16.3% |
| 1974 | 33.1% | +17.8% |
| 1975 | 29.4% | -11.1% |
| 1976 | 24.6% | -16.5% |
| 1977 | 24.3% | -1.3% |
| 1978 | 24.3% | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 18.8% | -22.8% |
| 1980 | 20.9% | +11.0% |
| 1981 | 20.7% | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 21.4% | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 19.0% | -11.1% |
| 1984 | 20.8% | +9.1% |
| 1985 | 17.9% | -13.9% |
| 1986 | 19.6% | +9.7% |
| 1987 | 21.8% | +11.1% |
| 1992 | 21.9% | +0.4% |
| 1993 | 20.0% | -8.8% |
| 1994 | 21.3% | +6.5% |
| 1995 | 21.2% | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 19.7% | -7.4% |
| 1997 | 25.9% | +31.5% |
| 1998 | 24.0% | -7.3% |
| 1999 | 22.2% | -7.4% |
| 2000 | 10.1% | -54.3% |
| 2001 | 22.6% | +122.6% |
| 2002 | 30.4% | +34.8% |
| 2003 | 30.2% | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 27.3% | -9.6% |
| 2005 | 23.8% | -12.8% |
| 2006 | 26.6% | +11.9% |
| 2007 | 23.7% | -11.1% |
| 2008 | 20.7% | -12.8% |
| 2009 | 13.3% | -35.8% |
| 2010 | 17.1% | +29.0% |
| 2011 | 15.5% | -9.3% |
| 2012 | 25.6% | +65.0% |
| 2013 | 27.5% | +7.3% |
| 2014 | 26.0% | -5.4% |
| 2015 | 24.5% | -5.9% |
| 2016 | 18.1% | -26.1% |
| 2017 | 9.6% | -46.7% |
| 2018 | 20.4% | +111.0% |
| 2019 | 19.0% | -6.6% |
| 2020 | 13.2% | -30.7% |
| 2021 | 19.5% | +48.1% |
| 2022 | 15.3% | -21.8% |
| 2023 | 25.2% | +65.2% |
| 2024 | 26.1% | +3.6% |
Seychelles compared with similar countries
- Seychelles's 26.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 12.9%, 2.0× the median. (71 countries reporting)
- Seychelles's 26.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 21.1%, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Food imports (% of merchandise imports) in Seychelles changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +122.6% | 10.1% | 22.6% |
| 2018 | +111.0% | 9.6% | 20.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 26.2% | 18.8% | 33.1% | 9 |
| 1980s | 20.3% | 17.9% | 21.8% | 8 |
| 1990s | 22.0% | 19.7% | 25.9% | 8 |
| 2000s | 22.9% | 10.1% | 30.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.3% | 9.6% | 27.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 19.9% | 13.2% | 26.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Seychelles
- 24 Afghanistan 26.9% compare
- 25 Guinea 26.6% compare
- 26 Tajikistan 26.5% compare
- 28 Iran 26.1% compare
- 29 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 26.0% compare
- 30 Saint Kitts and Nevis 25.4% compare
More private sector data for Seychelles
- Merchandise trade 86.7% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 51.8% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 1.52 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 1.07 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 85.9% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 0.3% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 550.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 1.91 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 4,481 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2304 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is food imports in Seychelles?
- Food imports in Seychelles was 26.1% in 2024, according to Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division.
- What is the highest food imports recorded in Seychelles?
- The highest recorded value was 33.1% in 1974.
- What is the lowest food imports recorded in Seychelles?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.6% in 2017.
- How does Seychelles rank for food imports?
- Seychelles ranks 27th out of 196 countries with data for 2024.
- Is food imports rising or falling in Seychelles?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Seychelles data come from?
- The figures come from Comtrade database, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Statistics Division, published as part of Food imports (% of merchandise imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 50 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Food comprises the commodities in SITC (Rev. 3) sections 0 (food and live animals), 1 (beverages and tobacco), and 4 (animal and vegetable oils and fats) and division 22 (oil seeds, oil nuts, and oil kernels). This indicator is expressed as a percentage of merchandise imports which is comprised of goods whose economic ownership is changed between a non-resident and a resident and that are not included in the following specific categories: goods under merchanting, non-monetary gold, and parts of travel, construction, and government goods and services n.i.e.