Mrs. Patricia Francourt (née Khan) was born on the 11^th October 1965. She grew up in the district of St. Louis, where her parents - Mr. Ally and Mrs. Zita Khan - were retailers who owned and ran a community convenience store on Stevenson-Delhomme Road. She is the sixth in a family of seven siblings, and has three brothers and three sisters.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

Mrs.Francourt attended St. Paul Girl’s School; an Anglican school which was situated next to Gordon Square  (now known as Freedom Square). She then completed her secondary school studies at Regina Mundi Convent, which later merged with Seychelles College.

In 1987, Mrs. Francourt moved to the UK, where she lived in Hounslow - an area of southwest London - for 23 years. Whilst looking after her then-infant son, Mrs. Francourt worked part-time in Banking for ten years, where she worked as a Cashier at a Bureau de Change at London Heathrow Airport. During this time, Mrs. Francourt decided to volunteer on a transformative programme for young people, where she served as a mentor to young people deemed ‘at-risk’ from social ills. Her experience on this programme prompted a desire to seek a career change. Mrs. Francourt pursued further studies and completely re-trained herself to work towards her professional goals of wanting to work within Education.

She worked in a West London-based secondary school for ten years, as both a Learning Mentor, and later, as a Learning Support Manager. She has also worked as a trainer across various Secondary and Higher Education establishments, where she promoted inclusion and equal opportunities for young people. Mrs. Francourt continued her professional development and commitment to lifelong learning, by undertaking further training to become a qualified psychotherapist. She is trained in integrative approaches to counselling and psychotherapy, her license allows her to practice internationally.

Prior to Mrs. Francourt’s appointment as Minister, she ran her own consultancy, offering services in: Workforce Training, Life and Business Coaching, as well as a private counselling practice. Since moving back to Seychelles in 2010, she has also worked as a Consultant for the Ministry of Education, where she contributed towards Seychelles’ Inclusion and Special Educational Needs policy, as well as the successful design, delivery and evaluation of three flagship behavioural intervention programmes for teenagers: The Youth Engagement Programme (YEP), the Alternative Education Programme (AEP) and the Youth Integrated Support Programme (YISP).

Mrs. Francourt is also a pro-active volunteer who has supported a range of causes that are close to her heart. She has voluntarily supported many programmes for young people at risk in Seychelles, and she has been an active member of the Cancer Concern Association, having been elected by its members as the NGO’s Vice Chairperson in 2019. These roles saw Mrs. Francourt working directly with disaffected young people and families from all walks of life, putting in place interventions to provide them with the best chances of alleviating barriers in order to realise their potential. 

During her spare time, Mrs. Francourt likes to catch up with her favourite television programmes, as well as connect with close friends and family members. She also aims to connect with young people at risk on a monthly basis, by voluntary supporting with different engagement programmes led by various NGOs. Mrs. Francourt is also a pro-active member of the congregation at her local Anglican church.

Mrs. Francourt was appointed as the Minister for Employment and Social Affairs on the 3^rd November 2020. She has one son, who was born in the United Kingdom and now lives in Seychelles.