Vice-President
What was the position of James Michel in late 1990s?
James Michel James Alix Michel , GCSK ( born August 16 , 1944 ) is a Seychellois politician who was President of Seychelles from 2004 to 2016 . He previously served as Vice-President under his predecessor , France-Albert René , from 1996 to 2004 . Michel was initially a teacher , but later he became involved in the archipelagos booming tourism industry and joined Renés political party before independence in 1976 . Life and career . Michel followed President René through different political posts during all periods of the Seychelles history as an independent entity . He was a member of the Executive Committee of the Seychelles Peoples United Party from 1974 to 1977 ; subsequently , when the party was transformed into the Seychelles Peoples Progressive Front ( SPPF ) , he became a member of its Central Executive Committee . René staged a coup against the countrys first President , James Mancham , only one year after independence , and Michel was appointed as Minister of Public Administration and Information in June 1977 . During the 1977–1993 one-party socialist rule , Michel held various ruling party and ministerial portfolios , such as Minister of Finance from 1989 to 2006 . In 1984 he became the SPPFs Deputy Secretary-General , and in 1994 he became its Secretary-General . During the rule of President René , Michel was the head of the Seychellois economy on several occasions . In these 27 years , the Seychelles experienced a period of economic growth based on its tourism and fishery sectors , which was followed by stagnation in the 1990s . Starting from 2008 , Michel has presided over a macro-economic reform program , leading to a massive reduction in budget deficit and complete liberalization of foreign exchange transactions . Michel also played a major role in the countrys democratisation process , which started with multi-party elections in 1993 . However , according to the opposition , Seychelles still suffers from limited freedom and transparency of the press and rigged election , although all elections held since have been certified free and fair by international observers . According to official results , President René and his Seychelles Peoples Progressive Front party won presidential and legislative elections in 2001 and 2002 respectively , with about 54% of the vote in both cases . After retiring from politics in 2016 , Michel created the James Michel Foundation to fund and support projects that focuses on blue economy and climate change . Presidency . After serving as Vice-President for nearly eight years , beginning in August 1996 , Michel became President on 14 July 2004 , when René stepped down . At that point , Michel was Renés longest-serving cabinet minister . As President , he held the portfolios of Defence , Police , Information , and Risk & Disaster Management . Seychelles opposition leader , Wavel Ramkalawan , expressed increased concern over the declining trends in the national economy and demanded more dialogue with the ruling party . The leader of the Seychelles National Party furthermore said that he would be cooperating with President Michel . Michel won the presidential election held on 28–30 July 2006 , taking 53.7% of the vote . He was sworn in for his new term on 1 August 2006 . Michel won re-election in May 2011 , receiving 55.4% of the vote . He was sworn in for his new term of office on 22 May 2011 . In early 2015 , Michel confirmed that he planned to run for a third term in the next presidential election . Reflecting on his time in office , he said : I worked hard , I did everything for Seychelles [ and ] the Seychellois people and I feel that people appreciate my work . His term was scheduled to end in 2016 , but he announced on 1 October 2015 that the next election would be held a few months earlier . The date was subsequently set for 3–5 December 2015 . He very narrowly defeated Ramkalawan in a run-off by a margin of less than 200 votes . Michel announced on 27 September 2016 that he was resigning , effective 16 October , and handing over power to Vice President Danny Faure , less than a year into his third term . The decision coincided with the election of an opposition majority in the National Assembly in the September 2016 parliamentary election . Michel said that a new generation of Parti Lepep will take Seychelles to the next frontier of its development and that he felt a sense of mission accomplished . Awards and decorations . - Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean ( 2012 ) - Grand Cross Special Class of the Order pro Merito Melitensi ( 2010 )