Compare Comoros (2008) - Christmas Island (2005)

Compare Comoros (2008) z Christmas Island (2005)

	Comoros (2008)	Christmas Island (2005)

Administrative divisions	3 islands and 4 municipalities; Grande Comore, Anjouan, Domoni, Fomboni, Moheli, Moroni, Mutsamudu*	none (territory of Australia)
Age structure	0-14 years: 42.6% (male 151,920/female 150,851) 15-64 years: 54.4% (male 191,096/female 196,120) 65 years and over: 3% (male 9,933/female 11,497) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: NA 15-64 years: NA 65 years and over: NA
Agriculture - products	vanilla, cloves, ylang-ylang, perfume essences, copra, coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca)	NA
Airports	4 (2007)	1 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2007)	total: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 2,170 sq km land: 2,170 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 135 sq km land: 135 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC	about three-quarters the size of Washington, DC
Background	Comoros has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1975. In 1997, the islands of Anjouan and Moheli declared independence from Comoros. In 1999, military chief Col. AZALI seized power in a bloodless coup, and helped negotiate the 2000 Fomboni Accords power-sharing agreement in which the federal presidency rotates among the three islands, and each island maintains its own local government. AZALI won the 2002 Presidential election, and each island in the archipelago elected its own president. AZALI stepped down in 2006 and President SAMBI took office. Since 2006, Anjouan's President Mohamed BACAR has refused to work effectively with the Union presidency. This year BACAR effected Anjouan's de-facto secession from the Union, refusing to step down in favor of fresh Anjouanais elections when Comoros' other islands held legitimate elections in July. The African Union (AU) has stepped in to assist in resolving the political crisis, including applying sanctions and a naval blockade on Anjouan, but the situation remains at an impasse.	Named in 1643 for the day of its discovery, the island was annexed and settlement was begun by the UK in 1888. Phosphate mining began in the 1890s. The UK transferred sovereignty to Australia in 1958. Almost two-thirds of the island has been declared a national park.
Birth rate	36.35 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	NA
Budget	revenues: $27.6 million expenditures: $NA (2001 est.)	revenues: NA expenditures: NA, including capital expenditures of NA
Capital	name: Moroni geographic coordinates: 11 42 S, 43 14 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	The Settlement
Climate	tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)	tropical with a wet and dry season; heat and humidity moderated by trade winds; wet season December to April
Coastline	340 km	138.9 km
Constitution	23 December 2001	Christmas Island Act of 1958-59 (1 October 1958)
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: Territory of Christmas Island conventional short form: Christmas Island
Death rate	7.95 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	NA
Debt - external	$232 million (2000 est.)	-
Dependency status	-	territory of Australia; administered by the Australian Department of Transport and Regional Services
Diplomatic representation from the US	the US does not have an embassy in Comoros; the ambassador to Madagascar is accredited to Comoros	none (territory of Australia)
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Representative to the US and Ambassador to the UN Mohamed TOIHIRI chancery: Mission to the US, 336 East 45th Street (2nd floor), New York, NY 10017 telephone: [1] (212) 750-1637	none (territory of Australia)
Disputes - international	claims French-administered Mayotte	none
Economic aid - recipient	$25.23 million (2005 est.)	NA
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, privatize commercial and industrial enterprises, improve health services, diversify exports, promote tourism, and reduce the high population growth rate. The political problems caused the economy to contract in 2007. Remittances from 150,000 Comorans abroad help supplement GDP.	Phosphate mining had been the only significant economic activity, but in December 1987 the Australian Government closed the mine. In 1991, the mine was reopened. With the support of the government, a $34 million casino opened in 1993. The casino closed in 1998. The Australian Government in 2001 agreed to support the creation of a commercial space-launching site on the island, projected to begin operations in the near future
Electricity - consumption	18.6 million kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2005)	-
Electricity - production	20 million kWh (2005)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Murray Hill 361 m
Environment - current issues	soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on slopes without proper terracing; deforestation	NA
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	-
Ethnic groups	Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava	Chinese 70%, European 20%, Malay 10% note: no indigenous population (2001)
Exchange rates	Comoran francs (KMF) per US dollar - NA (2007), 392.03 (2006), 395.6 (2005), 396.21 (2004), 435.9 (2003) note: the Comoran franc is pegged to the euro at a rate of 491.9677 Comoran francs per euro	Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002), 1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Ahmed Abdallah SAMBI (since 26 May 2006) head of government: President Ahmed Abdallah SAMBI (since 26 May 2006) 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 May 2006 (next to be held by May 2010); prime minister appointed by the president; note - the post of prime minister has been vacant since May 2002 election results: Ahmed Abdallah SAMBI elected president; percent of vote - Ahmed Abdallah SAMBI 58.0%, Ibrahim HALIDI 28.3%, Mohamed DJAANFAMI 13.7%	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by the Australian governor general head of government: Administrator Evan WILLIAMS (since 1 November 2003) elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; administrator appointed by the governor general of Australia and represents the monarch and Australia
Exports	0 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Exports - commodities	vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), cloves, copra	phosphate
Exports - partners	Netherlands 35.8%, France 18.3%, Italy 12.8%, Singapore 7.8%, Turkey 5%, US 4.6% (2006)	Australia, NZ
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 Mahore (Mayotte - territorial collectivity of France, but claimed by Comoros) note: the crescent, stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam	the flag of Australia is used; note - in early 1986, the Christmas Island Assembly held a design competition for an island flag, however, the winning design has never been formally adopted as the official flag of the territory
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 40% industry: 4% services: 56% (2001 est.)	agriculture: NA industry: NA services: NA
GDP - real growth rate	-1% (2007 est.)	NA
Geographic coordinates	12 10 S, 44 15 E	10 30 S, 105 40 E
Geography - note	important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel	located along major sea lanes of Indian Ocean
Highways	-	total: 240 km paved: 30 km unpaved: 210 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%	-
Imports	709.1 bbl/day (2004)	NA
Imports - commodities	rice and other foodstuffs, consumer goods, petroleum products, cement, transport equipment	consumer goods
Imports - partners	France 24.8%, UAE 9.9%, South Africa 6.4%, Pakistan 6.3%, Kenya 5%, China 4.8%, India 4.4%, Italy 4.2% (2006)	principally Australia
Independence	6 July 1975 (from France)	none (territory of Australia)
Industrial production growth rate	-2% (1999 est.)	-
Industries	fishing, tourism, perfume distillation	tourism, phosphate extraction (near depletion)
Infant mortality rate	total: 70.66 deaths/1,000 live births male: 78.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 62.21 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: NA male: NA female: NA
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	3% (2005 est.)	-
International organization participation	ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AMF, AU, COMESA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW (signatory), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)	none
Irrigated land	NA	NA sq km
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; District Court; Magistrate's Court
Labor force	144,500 (1996 est.)	NA
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 80% industry and services: 20% (1996 est.)	NA
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 35.87% permanent crops: 23.32% other: 40.81% (2005)	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% note: mainly tropical rainforest; 63% of the island is a national park (2001)
Languages	Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (a blend of Swahili and Arabic)	English (official), Chinese, Malay
Legal system	French and Islamic law in a new consolidated code	under the authority of the governor general of Australia and Australian law
Legislative branch	unicameral Assembly of the Union (33 seats; 15 deputies are selected by the individual islands' local assemblies and 18 by universal suffrage; to serve for five years); elections: last held 18 and 25 April 2004 (next to be held in 2009) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CdIA 12, CRC 6; note - 15 additional seats are filled by deputies from local island assemblies	unicameral Christmas Island Shire Council (9 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: held every two years with half the members standing for election; last held 3 May 2003 (next to be held in 2005) election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - independents 9
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 62.73 years male: 60.37 years female: 65.15 years (2007 est.)	total population: NA male: NA female: NA
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 56.5% male: 63.6% female: 49.3% (2003 est.)	NA
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	Southeastern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of Indonesia
Map references	Africa	Southeast Asia
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 12 nm exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	total: 144 ships (1000 GRT or over) 657,755 GRT/954,498 DWT by type: bulk carrier 11, cargo 101, chemical tanker 3, container 1, livestock carrier 4, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 9, refrigerated cargo 6, roll on/roll off 6, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: 70 (Bangladesh 1, Bulgaria 1, Cyprus 1, Greece 8, India 2, Kenya 1, Kuwait 1, Lebanon 5, Norway 1, Pakistan 2, Philippines 1, Russia 9, Saudi Arabia 1, Syria 8, Turkey 8, Ukraine 13, UAE 5, US 2) (2007)	-
Military - note	-	defense is the responsibility of Australia
Military branches	National Development Army (AND): Comoran Security Force; Comoran Federal Police (2007)	-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.8% (2006)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 6 July (1975)	Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Nationality	noun: Comoran(s) adjective: Comoran	noun: Christmas Islander(s) adjective: Christmas Island
Natural hazards	cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano	the narrow fringing reef surrounding the island can be a maritime hazard
Natural resources	NEGL	phosphate, beaches
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	NA
People - note	-	the Australian Bureau of Statistics reports a population of 1,508 as of the 2001 Census
Political parties and leaders	Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros or CRC [AZALI Assowmani]; Camp of the Autonomous Islands or CdIA (a coalition of parties organized by the islands' presidents in opposition to the Union President); Front National pour la Justice or FNJ [Ahmed RACHID] (Islamic party in opposition); Mouvement pour la Democratie et le Progress or MDP-NGDC [Abbas DJOUSSOUF]; Parti Comorien pour la Democratie et le Progress or PCDP [Ali MROUDJAE]; Rassemblement National pour le Development or RND [Omar TAMOU, Abdoulhamid AFFRAITANE]	none
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	none
Population	711,417 (July 2007 est.)	361 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line	60% (2002 est.)	-
Population growth rate	2.84% (2007 est.)	0% (2005 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Flying Fish Cove
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 1 (2001)	AM 1, FM 1, shortwave 0 (2004)
Religions	Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2%	Buddhist 36%, Muslim 25%, Christian 18%, other 21% (1997)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.007 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.974 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.864 male(s)/female total population: 0.985 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	NA
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	-
Telephone system	general assessment: sparse system of microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communication stations; fixed-line connections only about 2 per 100 persons; mobile cellular usage about 2 per 100 persons domestic: HF radiotelephone communications and microwave radio relay international: country code - 269; HF radiotelephone communications to Madagascar and Reunion	general assessment: service provided by the Australian network domestic: GSM mobile telephone service replaced older analog system in February 2005 international: country code - 61-891; satellite earth stations - one Intelsat earth station provides telephone and telex service (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	16,900 (2005)	NA
Telephones - mobile cellular	16,100 (2005)	NA
Television broadcast stations	NA	NA
Terrain	volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills	steep cliffs along coast rise abruptly to central plateau
Total fertility rate	4.97 children born/woman (2007 est.)	NA
Unemployment rate	20% (1996 est.)	-

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