Compare Comoros (2004) - Mauritius (2005)

Compare Comoros (2004) z Mauritius (2005)

	Comoros (2004)	Mauritius (2005)

Administrative divisions	3 islands; Grande Comore (Njazidja), Anjouan (Nzwani), and Moheli (Mwali); note - there are also four municipalities named Domoni, Fomboni, Moroni, and Moutsamoudou	9 districts and 3 dependencies; Agalega Islands, Black River, Cargados Carajos Shoals, Flacq, Grand Port, Moka, Pamplemousses, Plaines Wilhems, Port Louis, Riviere du Rempart, Rodrigues, Savanne
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.8% (male 140,083; female 139,245) 15-64 years: 54.2% (male 174,216; female 179,050) 65 years and over: 3% (male 9,136; female 10,171) (2004 est.)	0-14 years: 24.4% (male 151,043/female 148,847) 15-64 years: 69.1% (male 424,472/female 425,974) 65 years and over: 6.5% (male 31,506/female 48,760) (2005 est.)
Agriculture - products	vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca)	sugarcane, tea, corn, potatoes, bananas, pulses; cattle, goats; fish
Airports	4 (2003 est.)	6 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2004 est.)	total: 2 over 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	-	total: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 2,170 sq km land: 2,170 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 2,040 sq km land: 2,030 sq km water: 10 sq km note: includes Agalega Islands, Cargados Carajos Shoals (Saint Brandon), and Rodrigues
Area - comparative	slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC	almost 11 times the size of Washington, DC
Background	Unstable Comoros has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands of Anjouan and Moheli declared their independence from Comoros. In 1999, military chief Col. AZALI seized power. He pledged to resolve the secessionist crisis through a confederal arrangement named the 2000 Fomboni Accord. In December 2001, voters approved a new constitution and presidential elections took place in the spring of 2002. Each island in the archipelago elected its own president and a new union president was sworn in on 26 May 2002.	Discovered by the Portuguese in 1505, Mauritius was subsequently held by the Dutch, French, and British before independence was attained in 1968. A stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record, the country has attracted considerable foreign investment and has earned one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Recent poor weather and declining sugar prices have slowed economic growth, leading to some protests over standards of living in the Creole community.
Birth rate	38 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)	15.62 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget	revenues: $27.6 million expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA (2001 est.)	revenues: $1.231 billion expenditures: $1.582 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
Capital	Moroni	Port Louis
Climate	tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)	tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, dry winter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)
Coastline	340 km	177 km
Constitution	23 December 2001 note: a Transitional National Unity Government (GUNT) was formed on 20 January 2002 following the passing of the new constitution; the GUNT governed until the presidential elections on 14 April 2002	12 March 1968; amended 12 March 1992
Country name	conventional long form: Union of the Comoros conventional short form: Comoros local long form: Union des Comores local short form: Comores	conventional long form: Republic of Mauritius conventional short form: Mauritius
Currency	Comoran franc (KMF)	-
Death rate	8.63 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)	6.83 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external	$232 million (2000 est.)	$1.78 billion (2004 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Comoros; the ambassador to Mauritius is accredited to Comoros	chief of mission: Ambassador John PRICE embassy: 4th Floor, Rogers House, John Kennedy Street, Port Louis mailing address: international mail: P. O. Box 544, Port Louis; US mail: American Embassy, Port Louis, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-2450 telephone: [230] 202-4400 FAX: [230] 208-9534
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Mahmoud M. ABOUD (ambassador to the US and Canada and permanent representative to the UN) chancery: (temporary) care of the Permanent Mission of the Union of the Comoros to the United Nations, 420 East 50th Street, New York, NY 10022 telephone: [1] (212) 972-8010 and 223-2711 FAX: [1] (212) 983-4712 and 715-0699	chief of mission: Ambassador Usha JEETAH chancery: 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 441, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-1491, 1492 FAX: [1] (202) 966-0983
Disputes - international	claims French-administered Mayotte	Mauritius claims the Chagos Archipelago (UK-administered British Indian Ocean Territory), and its former inhabitants, who reside chiefly in Mauritius, were granted UK citizenship but no right to patriation in the UK; claims French-administered Tromelin Island
Economic aid - recipient	$10 million (2001 est.)	$42 million (1997)
Economy - overview	One of the world's poorest countries, Comoros is made up of three islands that have inadequate transportation links, a young and rapidly increasing population, and few natural resources. The low educational level of the labor force contributes to a subsistence level of economic activity, high unemployment, and a heavy dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance. Agriculture, including fishing, hunting, and forestry, contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports. The country is not self-sufficient in food production; rice, the main staple, accounts for the bulk of imports. The government - which is hampered by internal political disputes - is struggling to upgrade education and technical training, to privatize commercial and industrial enterprises, to improve health services, to diversify exports, to promote tourism, and to reduce the high population growth rate. Increased foreign support is essential if the goal of 4% annual GDP growth is to be met. Remittances from 150,000 Comorans abroad help supplement GDP.	Since independence in 1968, Mauritius has developed from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial, and tourist sectors. For most of the period, annual growth has been in the order of 5% to 6%. This remarkable achievement has been reflected in more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality, and a much-improved infrastructure. Sugarcane is grown on about 90% of the cultivated land area and accounts for 25% of export earnings. The government's development strategy centers on expanding local financial institutions and building a domestic information telecommunications industry. Mauritius has attracted more than 9,000 offshore entities, many aimed at commerce in India and South Africa, and investment in the banking sector alone has reached over $1 billion. Mauritius, with its strong textile sector, has been well poised to take advantage of the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
Electricity - consumption	19.78 million kWh (2001)	1.707 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - production	21.27 million kWh (2001)	1.836 billion kWh (2002)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Piton 828 m
Environment - current issues	soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on slopes without proper terracing; deforestation	water pollution, degradation of coral reefs
Environment - international agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements	party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Ethnic groups	Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava	Indo-Mauritian 68%, Creole 27%, Sino-Mauritian 3%, Franco-Mauritian 2%
Exchange rates	Comoran francs (KMF) per US dollar - 435.9 (2003), 522.741 (2002), 549.779 (2001), 533.982 (2000), 461.775 (1999) note: prior to January 1999, the official rate was pegged to the French franc at 75 Comoran francs per French franc; since 1 January 1999, the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677 Comoran francs per euro	Mauritian rupees per US dollar - 27.499 (2004), 27.902 (2003), 29.962 (2002), 29.129 (2001), 26.25 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002); note - following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in January 2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002 presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May 2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and the head of government head of government: President AZALI Assoumani (since 26 May 2002); note - following a 1999 coup AZALI was appointed president; in January 2002 he resigned his position to run in the 14 April 2002 presidential elections; Prime Minister Hamada Madi BOLERO was appointed interim president until replaced again by AZALI in May 2002 when BOLERO was appointed Minister of External Defense and Territorial Security; the president is both the chief of state and the head of government cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: as defined by the 2001 constitution, the presidency rotates every four years among the elected presidents from the three main islands in the Union; election last held 14 April 2002 (next to be held NA April 2007); prime minister appointed by the president; note - AZALI has not appointed a Prime Minister since he was sworn into office in May 2002 election results: President AZALI Assoumani elected president with 75% of the vote	chief of state: President Sir Anerood JUGNAUTH (since 7 October 2003) and Vice President Abdool Raouf BUNDHUN (since 25 February 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Paul BERENGER (since 30 September 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president and vice president elected by the National Assembly for five-year terms; election last held 25 February 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president, responsible to the National Assembly election results: Karl OFFMANN elected president and Raouf BUNDHUN elected vice president; percent of vote by the National Assembly - NA%; note - Karl OFFMANN stepped down on 30 September 2003
Exports	NA (2001)	NA
Exports - commodities	vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra	clothing and textiles, sugar, cut flowers, molasses
Exports - partners	France 46.9%, Germany 18.8%, US 12.5% (2003)	UK 33.1%, France 20.4%, US 14.8%, Madagascar 5.1%, Italy 4.1% (2004)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 July - 30 June
Flag description	four equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), white, red, and blue with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist; centered within the triangle is a white crescent with the convex side facing the hoist and four white, five-pointed stars placed vertically in a line between the points of the crescent; the horizontal bands and the four stars represent the four main islands of the archipelago - Mwali, Njazidja, Nzwani, and Mayotte (a territorial collectivity of France, but claimed by Comoros); the crescent, stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam	four equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, yellow, and green
GDP	purchasing power parity - $441 million (2002 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 40% industry: 4% services: 56% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 7.6% industry: 30% services: 62.4% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $700 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $12,800 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	2% (2002 est.)	4.7% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	12 10 S, 44 15 E	20 17 S, 57 33 E
Geography - note	important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel	the main island, from which the country derives its name, is of volcanic origin and is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs
Highways	total: 880 km paved: 673 km unpaved: 207 km (1999 est)	total: 2,000 km paved: 1,960 km (including 60 km of expressways) unpaved: 40 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA	lowest 10%: NA highest 10%: NA
Illicit drugs	-	minor consumer and transshipment point for heroin from South Asia; small amounts of cannabis produced and consumed locally; significant offshore financial industry creates potential for money laundering, but corruption levels are relatively low and the government appears generally to be committed to regulating its banking industry
Imports	NA (2001)	NA
Imports - commodities	rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods; petroleum products, cement, transport equipment	manufactured goods, capital equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals
Imports - partners	France 31.6%, Japan 13.7%, South Africa 10.3%, Kenya 5.1%, UAE 5.1%, Thailand 4.3% (2003)	South Africa 11.3%, China 9.4%, India 9.3%, France 9.2%, Bahrain 5.3%, Japan 4.1% (2004)
Independence	6 July 1975 (from France)	12 March 1968 (from UK)
Industrial production growth rate	-2% (1999 est.)	8% (2000 est.)
Industries	tourism, perfume distillation	food processing (largely sugar milling), textiles, clothing; chemicals, metal products, transport equipment, nonelectrical machinery; tourism
Infant mortality rate	total: 77.22 deaths/1,000 live births male: 85.9 deaths/1,000 live births female: 68.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)	total: 15.03 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.74 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3.5% (2001 est.)	4.5% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AMF, AU, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (observer), ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ITU, LAS, NAM, OIC, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WMO	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, C, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land	NA sq km	200 sq km (2000 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court or Cour Supremes (two members appointed by the president, two members elected by the Federal Assembly, one elected by the Council of each island, and others are former presidents of the republic)	Supreme Court
Labor force	144,500 (1996 est.)	560,000 (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture 80%	agriculture and fishing 14%, construction and industry 36%, transportation and communication 7%, trade, restaurants, hotels 16%, finance 3%, other services 24% (1995)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 35.87% permanent crops: 23.32% other: 40.81% (2001)	arable land: 49.26% permanent crops: 2.96% other: 47.78% (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili and Arabic)	Creole 80.5%, Bhojpuri 12.1%, French 3.4% (official), other 3.7%, unspecified 0.3% (2000 census)
Legal system	French and Sharia (Islamic) law in a new consolidated code	based on French civil law system with elements of English common law in certain areas
Legislative branch	unicameral Assembly of the Union (30 seats; half the deputies are selected by the individual islands' local assemblies and the other half by universal suffrage; deputies serve for five years); note - elections for the former legislature, the Federal Assembly (dissolved in 1999) were held on 1 and 8 December 1996; the next elections for the Assembly of the Union were scheduled to be held on 18 and 25 April 2004	unicameral National Assembly (66 seats; 62 elected by popular vote, 4 appointed by the election commission from the losing political parties to give representation to various ethnic minorities; members serve five-year terms) elections: last held on 11 September 2000 (next to be held September 2005) election results: percent of vote by party - MSM/MMM 52.3%, MLP/PMSD 36.9%, OPR 10.8%; seats by party - MSM/MMM 54, MLP/PMSD 6, OPR 2
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 61.57 years male: 59.29 years female: 63.91 years (2004 est.)	total population: 72.38 years male: 68.4 years female: 76.41 years (2005 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 56.5% male: 63.6% female: 49.3% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 85.6% male: 88.6% female: 82.7% (2003 est.)
Location	Southern Africa, group of islands at the northern mouth of the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique	Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar
Map references	Africa	Political Map of the World
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Merchant marine	total: 62 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 452,801 GRT/681,343 DWT by type: bulk 9, cargo 31, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 1, livestock carrier 1, passenger 4, petroleum tanker 5, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 4 foreign-owned: Bahamas 1, Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Greece 7, Honduras 1, India 1, Kenya 1, Lebanon 7, Liberia 1, Marshall Islands 3, Pakistan 4, Panama 2, Russia 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Saudi Arabia 2, Syria 4, Turkey 21, United Kingdom 1, United States 1, Yemen 2 (2004 est.)	total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 22,946 GRT/27,102 DWT by type: bulk carrier 4, passenger/cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 2 foreign-owned: 6 (India 4, Switzerland 2) (2005)
Military branches	Comoran Security Force	National Police Force (includes the paramilitary Special Mobile Force or SMF and National Coast Guard)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$6 million (2003)	$12.5 million (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	3% (2003)	0.2% (2004)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 154,843 (2004 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 91,825 (2004 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 6 July (1975)	Independence Day, 12 March (1968)
Nationality	noun: Comoran(s) adjective: Comoran	noun: Mauritian(s) adjective: Mauritian
Natural hazards	cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano	cyclones (November to April); almost completely surrounded by reefs that may pose maritime hazards
Natural resources	NEGL	arable land, fish
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)	-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Political parties and leaders	Forces pour l'Action Republicaine or FAR [Col. Abdourazak ABDULHAMID]; Forum pour la Redressement National or FRN (alliance of 12 parties); Front Democratique or FD [Moustoifa Said CHEIKH]; Front National pour la Justice or FNJ (Islamic party in opposition) [Ahmed RACHID]; Movement des Citoyens pour la Republique or MCR [Mahamoud MRADABI]; Mouvement Populaire Anjouanais or MPA (Anjouan separatist movement) [leader NA]; Mouvement pour la Democratie et le Progress or MDP-NGDC [Abbas DJOUSSOUF]; Movement pour le Socialisme et la Democratie or MSD (splinter group of FD) [Abdou SOEFOU]; Parti Comorien pour la Democratie et le Progress or PCDP [Ali MROUDJAE]; Rassemblement National pour le Development or RND (party of the government) [Omar TAMOU, Abdoulhamid AFFRAITANE]	Hizbullah [Cehl Mohamed FAKEEMEEAH]; Mauritian Labor Party or MLP [Navinchandra RAMGOOLAM]; Mauritian Militant Movement or MMM [Paul BERENGER] - in coalition with MSM; Mauritian Social Democrat Party or PMSD [Charles Xavier-Luc DUVAL]; Militant Socialist Movement or MSM [Pravind JUGNAUTH] - governing party; Rodrigues Movement or MR [Joseph (Nicholas) Von MALLY]; Rodrigues Peoples Organization or OPR [Serge CLAIR]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	various labor unions
Population	651,901 (July 2004 est.)	1,230,602 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	60% (2002 est.)	10% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate	2.94% (2004 est.)	0.84% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	Fomboni, Moroni, Moutsamoudou	Port Louis
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)	AM 4, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2002)
Religions	Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%	Hindu 48%, Roman Catholic 23.6%, other Christian 8.6%, Muslim 16.6%, other 2.5%, unspecified 0.3%, none 0.4% (2000 census)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2004 est.)	at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.65 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communication stations domestic: HF radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay international: country code - 269; HF radiotelephone communications to Madagascar and Reunion	general assessment: small system with good service domestic: primarily microwave radio relay trunk system international: country code - 230; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); new microwave link to Reunion; HF radiotelephone links to several countries; fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia
Telephones - main lines in use	13,200 (2003)	348,200 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	2,000 (2003)	462,400 (2003)
Television broadcast stations	NA	2 (plus several repeaters) (1997)
Terrain	volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills	small coastal plain rising to discontinuous mountains encircling central plateau
Total fertility rate	5.15 children born/woman (2004 est.)	1.96 children born/woman (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate	20% (1996 est.)	10.8% (2004 est.)

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