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1
Some travelers from areas infected with yellow fever have been asked to provide vaccination certificates, but this is not an official policy.

2
Following WHO guidelines issued in 1973, a cholera vaccination certificate is not an official condition of entry to the Comoro Islands. However, outbreaks of cholera still occur periodically. Up-to-date advice should be sought before deciding whether precautions should include vaccination, as medical opinion is divided over its effectiveness.

3
Typhoid fevers are present.

4
Malaria risk exists all year throughout the whole country, predominantly in the malignant falciparum form. Resistance to chloroquine has been reported. The recommended prophylaxis is mefloquine. There have been cases of Dengue fever reported on Grande Comore. Travelers should take strict prevention measures against mosquito bites, by using repellents and by wearing sleeved shirts and long trousers.

Food & drink
All water should be regarded as being potentially contaminated. Water used for drinking, brushing teeth or making ice should have first been boiled or otherwise sterilized. Milk is unpasteurized and should be boiled. Powdered or tinned milk is available and is advised, but make sure that it is reconstituted with pure water. Avoid dairy products which are likely to have been made from unboiled milk. Only eat well-cooked meat and fish, preferably served hot. Pork, salad and mayonnaise may carry increased risk. Vegetables should be cooked and fruit peeled.

Other risks
Hepatitis A and E are widespread. Hepatitis B is hyperendemic. Both cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis may be found. Outbreaks of yellow fever occur periodically.

Health care
There is no reciprocal health agreement with the UK. Medical facilities are basic and most are private. In order to secure even basic medical care, visitors are strongly advised to take out comprehensive health insurance.
A previous French Overseas Territory, the Comoros only became fully independent in 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Ngazidja (formerly Grande Comore), Nzwani (formerly Anjouan) and Mwali (formerly Mohéli). Mahoré (Mayotte) is administered by France but is claimed by the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros.

Since independence, instability has characterized post-independence politics on the islands with several coup attempts.

The islands' vegetation is rich and varied: 65 per cent of the world's perfume essence comes from the Comoros, being processed from the blossoms of ylang-ylang, jasmine and orange. Spices, including nutmeg, cloves, pepper, basil and vanilla, are another mainstay of the economy. The islands are of volcanic origin and are surrounded by coral reefs and the more energetic travelers will be eager to climb to the top of Mounten Karthala, an active volcano on Ngazidja, or enjoy a vast range of watersports.

Geography
The Comoro archipelago is situated in the Indian Ocean north of Madagascar and consists of four main islands of volcanic origin, surrounded by coral reefs: Ngazidja (formerly Grande Comore), Nzwani (formerly Anjouan), Mwali (formerly Mohéli) and Mahoré (Mayotte). The latter is administered by France but is claimed by the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros. Land can only support subsistence agriculture but the surrounding seas are rich in marine life.

Agriculture, Livestock, and Fishing
Agriculture supported about 80 percent of the population and supplied about 95 percent of exports in the early 1990s. Two agricultural zones are generally defined: the coastal area, which ranges in elevation from sea level to 400 meters and which supports cash crops such as vanilla, ylang-ylang, and cloves; and the highlands, which support cultivation of crops for domestic consumption, such as cassava, bananas, rain rice, and sweet potatoes. As the population increased, food grown for domestic use met fewer and fewer of Comorans' needs. Data collected by the World Bank showed that food production per capita fell about 12 percent from 1980 to 1987. The republic imported virtually all its meat and vegetables; rice imports alone often accounted for up to 30 percent of the value of all imports.

Comoros is the world's principal producer of ylang-ylang essence, an essence derived from the flowers of a tree originally brought from Indonesia that is used in manufacturing perfumes and soaps. Ylang-ylang essence is a major component of Chanel No. 5, the popular scent for women. The republic is the world's second largest producer of vanilla, after Madagascar. Cloves are also an important cash crop. A total of 237 tons of vanilla was exported in 1991, at a price of about CF19 per kilogram. A total of 2,750 tons of cloves was exported in 1991, at a price of CF397 per kilogram. That year forty-three tons of ylang-ylang essence were exported at a price of about CF23,000 per kilogram. The production of all three commodities fluctuates wildly, mainly in response to changes in global demand and natural disasters such as cyclones. Profits--and therefore, government receipts-- likewise skyrocket and plummet, wreaking havoc with government efforts to predict revenues and plan expenditures. Stabex (Stabilization of Export Earnings), a system of the EC, provides aid to Comoros and other developing countries to mitigate the effects of fluctuations in the prices of export commodities.

Long-term prospects for the growth and stabilization of the markets for vanilla and ylang-ylang did not appear strong in the early 1990s. Vanilla faced increased competition from synthetic flavorings, and the preferences of perfume users were moving away from the sweet fragrance provided by ylang-ylang essence. Copra, the dried coconut meat that yields coconut oil, once an important Comoran export, had ceased to be a significant factor in the economy by the late 1980s, when the world's tastes shifted from high-fat coconut oil toward "leaner" substances such as palm oil. Although clove production and revenues also experienced swings, in the early 1990s cloves did not appear to face the same sorts of challenges confronting vanilla and ylang-ylang. Most Comoran vanilla is grown on Njazidja; Nzwani is the source of most ylangylang .

Numerous international programs have attempted to reduce the country's dependence on food imports, particularly of rice, a major drain on export earnings. Organizations initiating these rural development programs have included the EDF, the IFAD, the World Food Program, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and the governments of France and the United States. Despite these international efforts, which numbered as many as seventeen in 1984, food production per capita actually declined in Comoros during the 1980s. The major clove and vanilla growers, whose plantations occupy the islands' fertile coastal lands, generally resisted these restructuring efforts, as did rice-importing firms, including the country's largest, ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils.

Crowded onto the mountain slopes by the cash crop plantations, food-crop farmers have caused deforestation and the erosion of the highlands' thin, fragile soil. In response, aid providers have dedicated an increasing amount of agricultural assistance to reforestation, soil restoration, and environmentally sensitive means of cultivation. For example, all United States agricultural aid in 1991 (US$700,000) was directed to such projects, as was a US$4 million loan from the IFAD to help initiate a small producers' support program on Nzwani.

The livestock sector is small--some 47,000 cattle, 120,000 goats, 13,000 sheep, and 4,000 asses in 1990. Comoros continues to import most domestically consumed meat.

Since the latter part of the 1980s, Comoros has made headway in developing fisheries as a source of export earnings. In 1988 the government concluded a three-year agreement with the EC by which forty French and Spanish vessels would be permitted to fish in Comoran waters, primarily for tuna. In return, Comoros would receive ECU300,000, and ECU50,000 would be invested in fisheries research. In addition, fishing vessel operators would pay ECU20 per ton of tuna netted. Although the deep waters outside the islands' reefs do not abound in fish, it has been estimated that up to 30,000 tons of fish could be taken per year from Comoran waters (which extend 320 kilometers offshore). The total catch in 1990 was 5,500 tons. Japan has also provided aid to the fishing industry. Fisheries development is overseen by a state agency, the Development Company for Small-Scale Fisheries of Comoros (Société de Développement de la Pêche Artisanale des Comores).

Area
1862 sq km (719 sq miles).

Population
812,000 (UN, 2005).

Population Density
436 per sq km.

Capital
Moroni.
Population: 60,200 (2003).

Government
Federal Islamic Republic.
Head of State: President Azali Assoumani, since the military coup of April 1999. Recent history: Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a six-year term. Colonel Azzali Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election in May 2002. By mid-2003, the new Government had faced just a single coup plot. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, Parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Language
The official languages are French, Arabic and Comorian, a blend of Arabic and Swahili.

Religion
Muslim (mostly Sunni) with Roman Catholic minority.

Electricity
220 volts AC, 50Hz. Electricity shortages occur.

Telephone
Outgoing international calls must be made through the international operator. Country code: 269.

Mobile telephone
Limited coverage.

Internet
A few hotels have Internet access.

Post
Mail to Western Europe takes at least one week.

MEDIA
Press: There is no single national newspaper. Although several private newspapers criticize the Government, self-censorship is reportedly common. The main (weekly) papers are Al Watwan (state-owned) published on Grand Comore, Kuesi published on the French island of Mayotte and La Gazette des Comores (independent). L'Archipel (independent) is published monthly. There are no English-language newspapers.
Radio/TV: There is a national radio station, Radio Comoros, and a national TV service. RFO Mayotte, run by French public radio and TV, broadcasts French and locally-produced radio and TV programs from the French island of Mayotte and can be received in parts of the archipelago. Other radio stations include: Radio Dziyalandze Mutsamudu (RDM), an FM station on Anjouan, which relays Radio France Internationale and Radio Ngazidja, the official station on Grand Comore. Local radio and TV stations operate without overt Government interference.

Public Holidays
Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2006-June 2007 period.


Jan 10 2006: Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).
Jan 31: Muharram (Islamic New Year).
Feb 9: Ashoura.
Mar 18: Anniversary of the Death of President Said Mohamed Cheikh.
May 25: Anniversary of the Organization of African Unity.
May 29: Anniversary of the Death of President Ali Soilih.
Jul 6: Independence Day.
Oct 22-24: Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan).
Nov 26: Anniversary of the Death of President Ahmed Abdallah.
Dec 25: Christmas Day.
Dec 31: Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).

Jan 20 2007: Muharram (Islamic New Year).
Jan 30: Ashoura.
Mar 18: Anniversary of the Death of President Said Mohamed Cheikh.
May 25: Anniversary of the Organization of African Unity.
May 29: Anniversary of the Death of President Ali Soilih.

Note
Muslim festivals are timed according to local sightings of various phases of the moon and the dates given above are approximations. During the lunar month of Ramadan that precedes Eid al-Fitr, Muslims fast during the day and feast at night and normal business patterns may be interrupted. Many restaurants are closed during the day and there may be restrictions on smoking and drinking. Some disruption may continue into Eid al-Fitr itself. Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha may last anything from 2 to 10 days, depending on the region. For more information, see the World of Islam section.

Contact Information:

Location
Indian Ocean, between the East African coast and Madagascar.

Time
GMT + 3.

Société Comorienne de Tourisme et Hôtellerie (le moroni)
Itsandra Hotel, BP 1027, Njazidja, Comoros
Tel: 732 365.

Embassy of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros in France
20 rue Marbeau, 75016 Paris, France
Tel: (1) 4067 9054. Fax: (1) 4845 1365.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 1000-1600.

Honorary Consulate in the UK
Flat 6, 24-26 Avenue Road, London NW8 6DU, UK
Tel: (020) 7722 1146.
E-mail: kchehabi@blueyonder.co.uk

Permanent Mission of the Comoros to the United Nations
866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 418, New York, NY 10017, USA
Tel: (212) 750 1637.
Website: www.un.int/comoros
Area
1862 sq km (719 sq miles).

Population
812,000 (UN, 2005).

Population Density
436 per sq km.

Capital
Moroni.
Population: 60,200 (2003).

Government
Federal Islamic Republic.
Head of State: President Azali Assoumani, since the military coup of April 1999. Recent history: Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a six-year term. Colonel Azzali Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election in May 2002. By mid-2003, the new Government had faced just a single coup plot. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, Parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Language
The official languages are French, Arabic and Comorian, a blend of Arabic and Swahili.

Religion
Muslim (mostly Sunni) with Roman Catholic minority.

Electricity
220 volts AC, 50Hz. Electricity shortages occur.

Telephone
Outgoing international calls must be made through the international operator. Country code: 269.

Mobile telephone
Limited coverage.

Internet
A few hotels have Internet access.

Post
Mail to Western Europe takes at least one week.

MEDIA
Press: There is no single national newspaper. Although several private newspapers criticize the Government, self-censorship is reportedly common. The main (weekly) papers are Al Watwan (state-owned) published on Grand Comore, Kuesi published on the French island of Mayotte and La Gazette des Comores (independent). L'Archipel (independent) is published monthly. There are no English-language newspapers.
Radio/TV: There is a national radio station, Radio Comoros, and a national TV service. RFO Mayotte, run by French public radio and TV, broadcasts French and locally-produced radio and TV programs from the French island of Mayotte and can be received in parts of the archipelago. Other radio stations include: Radio Dziyalandze Mutsamudu (RDM), an FM station on Anjouan, which relays Radio France International and Radio Ngazidja, the official station on Grand Comoros. Local radio and TV stations operate without overt Government interference.

Public Holidays
Below are listed Public Holidays for the January 2006-June 2007 period.


Jan 10 2006: Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).
Jan 31: Muharram (Islamic New Year).
Feb 9: Ashoura.
Mar 18: Anniversary of the Death of President Said Mohamed Cheikh.
May 25: Anniversary of the Organization of African Unity.
May 29: Anniversary of the Death of President Ali Soilih.
Jul 6: Independence Day.
Oct 22-24: Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan).
Nov 26: Anniversary of the Death of President Ahmed Abdallah.
Dec 25: Christmas Day.
Dec 31: Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice).

Jan 20 2007: Muharram (Islamic New Year).
Jan 30: Ashoura.
Mar 18: Anniversary of the Death of President Said Mohamed Cheikh.
May 25: Anniversary of the Organization of African Unity.
May 29: Anniversary of the Death of President Ali Soilih.

Note
Muslim festivals are timed according to local sightings of various phases of the moon and the dates given above are approximations. During the lunar month of Ramadan that precedes Eid al-Fitr, Muslims fast during the day and feast at night and normal business patterns may be interrupted. Many restaurants are closed during the day and there may be restrictions on smoking and drinking. Some disruption may continue into Eid al-Fitr itself. Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha may last anything from 2 to 10 days, depending on the region. For more information, see the World of Islam section.

Contact Information:

Location
Indian Ocean, between the East African coast and Madagascar.

Time
GMT + 3.

Société Comorienne de Tourisme et Hôtellerie (COMOTEL)
Itsandra Hotel, BP 1027, Ngazidja, Comoros
Tel: 732 365.

Embassy of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros in France
20 rue Marbeau, 75016 Paris, France
Tel: (1) 4067 9054. Fax: (1) 4845 1365.
Opening hours: Mon-Fri 1000-1600.

Honorary Consulate in the UK
Flat 6, 24-26 Avenue Road, London NW8 6DU, UK
Tel: (020) 7722 1146.
E-mail: kchehabi@blueyonder.co.uk

Permanent Mission of the Comoros to the United Nations
866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 418, New York, NY 10017, USA
Tel: (212) 750 1637.
Website: www.un.int/comoros
As recently as the early 1980 Comoros had no national media. State-run Radio Comoros, transmitting from Ngazidja, was not strong enough to send clear signals to the republic's other two islands. In 1984 France agreed to provide Radio Comoros with funding for an FM (frequency modulation) transmitter strong enough to broadcast to all three islands, and in 1985 made a commitment to fund a national newspaper after a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) study revealed that Comoros was the only UN member lacking print and electronic media. A state-owned newspaper, Al Watwany, began operations in July 1985, first as a monthly and soon afterward as a weekly. An independent weekly, L'Archipel, began publishing in 1988. A news agency, Agency Comoros Press, is now based in Moroni, and France has provided funds for establishing a national television service. In 1989 Comoros had an estimated 61,000 radios and 200 television sets. In addition to national broadcasts on FM in Comoro Swahili and French, Radio Comoros in 1993 broadcast internationally on the shortwave band in Swahili, Arabic, and French. An independent commercial FM radio station, Radio Troilus FM, began broadcasting in 1991, although it and its director, political activist Ali Bakar Cassim, have both been the object of government ire over the station's readiness to criticize the Djohar regime.

During the independent media's brief career, its representatives occasionally have been rounded up along with other critics of the government during the republic's recurrent bouts of political crisis. However, outlets such as Radio Tropique FM and L'Archipel, which is noted for its satirical column, "Winking Eye," continue to provide independent political commentary.
Comoros Comoros as Client State: The Economics of Abdallah
President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980 export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of which ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils was the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorans and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.

Abdallah's firm, whose co-owners included Denard and Kalfane and Company, a Pakistani concern, also profited from managing the importation of materials used by South African firms in developing tourist hotels. Little of the material used in building these resorts was of Comoran origin. Also, once completed, the resorts would be almost entirely owned and managed by non-Comorans. Although tourism, mainly by South Africans who were unwelcome in other African resorts, was widely considered the only promising new industry in Comoros, Abdallah guided its development so that resorts benefited few Comorans other than himself and his associates.

Under Abdallah's tutelage, the Comoran economy finished the 1980s much as it had started the decade--poor, underdeveloped, and dependent on export earnings from cash crops of unpredictable and generally declining value. The critical difference, with enormous implications for the republic's capacity to have some say in its own destiny, was its new status as a nation abjectly in debt. By 1988, the last full year of the Abdallah regime, 80 percent of annual public expenditures were funded by external aid (see Economy , this ch.).

Comoros Historical Setting
THE FEDERAL ISLAMIC REPUBLIC of the Comoros is an archipelago situated in the western Indian Ocean, about midway between the island of Madagascar and the coast of East Africa at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel. The archipelago has served in past centuries as a stepping stone between the African continent and Madagascar, as a southern outpost for Arab traders operating along the East African coast, and as a center of Islamic culture. The name "Comoros" is derived from the Arabic kamar or kumr, meaning "moon," although this name was first applied by Arab geographers to Madagascar. In the nineteenth century, Comoros was absorbed into the French overseas empire, but it unilaterally proclaimed independence from France on July 6, 1975.

Comoros has had a troubled and uncertain course as an independent state. Mahoré, or Mayotte, the easternmost of the archipelago's four main islands, including Njazidja (formerly Grande Comore), Mwali (formerly Mohéli), and Nzwani (formerly Anjouan), remains under French administration, a majority of its voters having chosen to remain tied to France in referendums held in 1974 and 1976 (see Physical Environment , this ch.). By the mid-1990s, the integration of Mahoré into Comoros remained an official objective of the Comoran government, but it had taken a back seat to more pressing concerns, such as developing a viable national economy. Meanwhile, the Mahorais were making the most of their close relationship with France. They accepted large amounts of developmental aid and took an intense interest in French political events. Although South Africa played a major role in the Comoran economy in the 1980s, by the early 1990s France was the island republic's foremost patron, providing economic aid, political guidance, and national security.

Comoros is densely populated and dedicates only limited amounts of land to food production. Thus, it depends heavily on imports of rice, vegetables, and meat. Its economy is based on the production of cash crops, principally ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, and cloves, all of which have experienced wild price swings in recent years, thus complicating economic planning and contributing to a burgeoning trade deficit. A growing dependence on foreign aid, often provided to meet day-to-day needs for food, funds, and government operations, further clouds economic prospects. Comoros suffers the ills of a developing nation in particularly severe form: food shortages and inadequate diets, poor health standards, a high rate of population growth, widespread illiteracy, and international indebtedness.

The country has endured political and natural catastrophes. Less than a month after independence, the government of the first Comoran president, Ahmed Abdallah, was overthrown; in 1978 foreign mercenaries carried out a second coup, overthrowing the radical regime of Ali Soilih and returning Abdallah to power. Indigenous riots in Madagascar in 1976 led to the repatriation of an estimated 17,000 Comorans. The eruption of the volcano, Kartala, on Njazidja in 1977 displaced some 2,000 people and possibly hastened the downfall of the Soilih regime. Cyclones in the 1980s, along with a violent coup that included the assassination of President Abdallah in 1989 and two weeks of rule by European mercenaries, rounded out the first fifteen years of Comoran independence.

In the early 1990s, the omnipresent mercenaries of the late 1970s and 1980s were gone, and the winding down of civil conflict in southern Africa, in combination with the end of the Cold War, had reduced the republic's value as a strategic chess piece. However, as in the 1970s and 1980s, the challenge to Comorans was to find a way off the treadmills of economic dependency and domestic political dysfunction.

Comoros Mercenary Rule
Abdallah complemented his political maneuvers by employing a GP officered by many of the same mercenaries who had helped him take power in 1978. Denard led this force, and also became heavily involved in Comoros business activities, sometimes acting in partnership with President Abdallah or as a front for South African business interests, which played a growing role in the Comorians economy during the Abdallah regime.

Although Denard had made a ceremonial departure from Comoros following the 1978 coup, by the early 1980s he was again openly active in the islands. The GP, whose numbers were reported to range from 300 to 700 members, primarily indigenous Comorans, were led by about thirty French and Belgian mercenaries, mostly comrades of Denard's in the post-World War II conflicts that accompanied the decolonization of Africa and Asia. Answerable only to the president, the GP operated outside the chain of command of the French-trained 1,000-member Comoran Armed Forces, a situation that caused resentment among the regular military, Comoran citizens, and other African states.

The GP's primary missions were to protect the president and to deter attempts to overthrow his government. During the July 1983 elections to the three islands' legislative councils, the GP beat and arrested demonstrators protesting the republic's singleparty system. During elections to the National Assembly in March 1987, the GP--which had become known as les affreux, "the frighteners"--replaced several hundred dissident poll watchers who had been arrested by the army. On March 8, 1985, one of the most serious attempts to overthrow the Abdallah government began as a mutiny by about thirty Comoran troops of the GP against their European officers. The disaffected guards had formed ties to the Democratic Front (Front Démocratique--FD), one of the more nationalistic of the republic's many banned political parties. The mutiny was quickly squelched; three of the rebellious guards were killed, and the rest were taken prisoners.

President Abdallah used the uprising as an opportunity to round up dissidents, primarily FD members, whose leadership denied involvement in the coup attempt. Later in 1985, seventyseven received convictions; seventeen, including the FD's secretary general, Mustapha Said Cheikh, were sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor. Most of the prisoners were released in 1986 following Amnesty International charges of illegal arrests, torture, and other abuses. France had also exerted pressure by temporarily withholding new aid projects and purchases of Comoran vanilla.

Perhaps the most notorious action of the GP on behalf of the Abdallah government occurred in November 1987. After an apparent attempt by dissidents to free some political prisoners, an event quickly labeled a coup attempt by the Abdallah regime, the GP arrested fourteen alleged plotters and tortured seven of them to death. Officials of the Comoran government apparently were not allowed to participate in the prisoners' interrogation. President Abdallah was on a state visit to Egypt at the time.

With Abdallah's acquiescence and occasional participation, Denard and the other GP officers used their connections to the head of state to make themselves important players in the Comoran economy. Denard was a part owner of ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils, Comoros' largest import-export firm, whose primary owner was President Abdallah. Denard also owned and operated a highly profitable commercial shuttle between South Africa and Comoros, and owned Sogecom, a private security firm with contracts to protect South African hotels being built in the islands.

The GP officers, sympathetic to South Africa's apartheid government, established themselves as a conduit of South African investment and influence in Comoros. An official South African trade representative conceded that a number of his country's investment projects, including a 525-hectare experimental farm, housing, road construction, and a medical evacuation program, were brokered and managed by guard officers at the mercenaries' insistence.

The GP also arranged for South African commercial aircraft to fly in the Middle East and parts of Africa under the aegis of the Comoran national airline, in contravention of international sanctions against South Africa. Furthermore, the GP provided for South African use of Comoran territory as a base for intelligence gathering in the Mozambique Channel and as a staging area for the shipment of arms to rightist rebels in Mozambique. The GP was widely understood to be funded by South Africa, at the rate of about US$3 million per year.

Data as of August 1994


Comoros The Abdallah Regime
Friday mosque and port, Moroni
Courtesy Mari G. Borstelmann

Following a few days of provisional government, the two men who had financed the coup, former president Ahmed Abdallah (himself the victim of the 1975 coup) and former vice president Mohamed Ahmed, returned to Moroni from exile in Paris and installed themselves as joint presidents. Soon after, Abdallah was named sole executive.

The continued presence of the mercenaries impeded Abdallah's early efforts to stabilize Comoros. Denard seemed interested in remaining in Comoros, and he and his friends were given financially rewarding appointments with the new government. In reaction to Denard's involvement with Abdallah, the OAU revoked Comoros' OAU membership, Madagascar severed diplomatic relations, and the United Nations (UN) threatened economic sanctions against the regime. France also exerted pressure for Denard to leave, and in late September--temporarily, as it developed--he departed the islands.

Abdallah consolidated power, beginning with the writing of a new constitution. The document combined federalism and centralism. It granted each island its own legislature and control over taxes levied on individuals and businesses resident on the island (perhaps with an eye to rapprochement with Mahoré), while reserving strong executive powers for the president. It also restored Islam as the state religion, while acknowledging the rights of those who did not observe the Muslim faith. The new constitution was approved by 99 percent of Comoran voters on October 1, 1978. The Comorans also elected Abdallah to a six-year term as president of what was now known as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros.

Although Abdallah had been president when Comoros broke away from France in 1975, he now moved to establish a relationship much more to France's liking. Upon Denard's departure, he gave a French military mission responsibility for training Comoros' defense force. He also signed an agreement with France to allow its navy full use of Comoran port facilities.

Making the most of Comoros' new presidential system, Abdallah induced the nation's National Assembly to enact a twelve-year ban on political parties, a move that guaranteed his reelection in 1984. In 1979 his government arrested Soilih regime members who had not already left or been killed during the 1978 coup. Four former ministers of the Soilih government disappeared and allegedly were murdered, and about 300 other Soilih supporters were imprisoned without trial. For the next three years, occasional trials were held, in many cases only after France had insisted on due process for the prisoners.

Although the restoration of good relations with France represented a sharp break with the policies of the previous regime, Abdallah built on Soilih's efforts to find new sources of diplomatic and economic support. Thanks in large part to aid from the European Community (EC--see Glossary) and the Arab states, the regime began to upgrade roads, telecommunications, and port facilities. The government also accepted international aid for programs to increase the cultivation of cash crops and food for domestic consumption. Abdallah endeavored to maintain the relations established by Soilih with China, Nigeria, and Tanzania, and to expand Comoros' contacts in the Islamic world with visits to Libya and the Persian Gulf states.

Despite international assistance, economic development was slow. Although some Comorans blamed the French, who had yet to restore technical assistance to pre-1975 levels, others suspected that Abdallah, who owned a large import-export firm, was enriching himself from development efforts with the assistance of Denard, who continued to visit Comoros.

Opposition to the Abdallah regime began to appear as early as 1979, with the formation of an exile-dominated group that became known as the United National Front of Comorans--Union of Comorans (Front National Uni des Komoriens--Union des Komoriens--FNUK-- Unikom). In 1980 the Comoran ambassador to France, Said Ali Kemal, resigned his position to form another opposition group, the National Committee for Public Safety (Comité National de Salut Public). A failed coup in February 1981, led by a former official of the Soilih regime, resulted in arrests of about forty people.

In regard to Mahoré, Abdallah offered little more than verbal resistance to a 1979 decision of the French government to postpone action on the status of the island until 1984. At the same time, he kept the door open to Mahoré by writing a large measure of autonomy for the component islands of the republic into the 1978 constitution and by appointing a Mahorais as his government's minister of finance. Having established an administration that, in comparison with the Soilih years, seemed tolerable to his domestic and international constituencies, Abdallah proceeded to entrench himself. He did this through domestic and international policies that would profoundly compromise Comoros' independence and create the chronic crisis that continued to characterize Comoran politics and government in 1994.

Data as of August 1994


Comoros The Break with France
Politics in the 1960s were dominated by a social and economic elite--largely descendants of the precolonial sultanate ruling families--which was conservative and pro-French. During Comoros' period of self-government as an overseas department, there were two main conservative political groupings: the Parti Vert (Green Party), which later became known as the Comoros Democratic Union (Union Démocratique des Comores--UDC), and the Parti Blanc (White Party), later reconstituted as the Democratic Assembly of the Comoran People (Rassemblement Démocratique du Peuple Comorien-- RDPC). Dr. Said Mohamed Cheikh, president of the Parti Vert and of the Governing Council, was, until his death in 1970, the most important political leader in the islands. The Parti Blanc, under Prince Said Ibrahim, provided the opposition, endorsing a progressive program that included land reform and a loosening of the monopoly on Comoran cash crops enjoyed by the foreign-owned plantation sociétés. The second most powerful member of the Parti Vert, Ahmed Abdallah, a wealthy plantation owner and representative to the French National Assembly, succeeded Cheikh as president of the Governing Council soon after Cheikh died.

Well into the 1960s, the two established parties were concerned primarily with maintaining a harmonious relationship with France while obtaining assistance in economic planning and infrastructure development. Given this consensus, politically active Comorans often based their allegiance on personal feelings toward the doctor and the prince who led the two main parties and on whatever patronage either party could provide.

The independence movement started not in the Comoro Islands but among Comoran expatriates in Tanzania, who founded the National Liberation Movement of Comoros (Mouvement de la Libération Nationale des Comores--Molinaco) in 1962. Molinaco actively promoted the cause of Comoran independence abroad, particularly in the forum of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), but not until 1967 did it begin to extend its influence to the islands themselves, engaging in largely clandestine activities. The Socialist Party of Comoros (Parti Socialiste des Comores--Pasoco), established in 1968, was largely supported by students and other young people.

A growing number of politically conscious Comorans, resenting what they perceived as French neglect of the Comoro Islands, supported independence. Independence-minded Comorans, especially younger ones, were energized by dramatic events across the Mozambique Channel on the African mainland. Tanganyika had gained its independence from Britain in 1961 and soon adopted a government based on "African socialism." Zanzibar, another longtime British colony, became independent in 1963 and overthrew the ruling Arab elite in a violent revolution the following year; the island state then merged with Tanganyika to form the new nation of Tanzania. Meanwhile, nationalists were beginning uprisings in the Portuguese colony of Mozambique.

Abdallah, although a conservative politician, saw independence as a "regrettable necessity," given the unsatisfactory level of French support and the growing alienation of an increasingly radicalized younger generation. The violent suppression of a student demonstration in 1968 and the death of Said Mohammed Cheikh in 1970 provided further evidence of the erosion of the existing order. In 1972 leaders of the Parti Vert (now the UDC) and the Parti Blanc (now the RDPC) agreed to press for independence, hoping at the same time to maintain cordial relations with France. A coalition of conservative and moderate parties, the Party for the Evolution of Comoros (Parti pour l'ةvolution des Comores), was in the forefront of the independence effort. The coalition excluded Pasoco, which it perceived as violently revolutionary, but it cooperated for a time with Molinacol. During 1973 and 1974, the local government negotiated with France, and issued a "Common Declaration" on June 15, 1973, defining the means by which the islands would gain independence. Part of the backdrop of the negotiations was a proindependence riot in November 1973 in Moroni in which the buildings of the Chamber of Deputies were burned. A referendum was held on December 22, 1974. Voters supported independence by a 95 percent majority, but 65 percent of those casting ballots on Mahoré chose to remain as a French department (see The Issue of Mahoré, this ch.).

Twenty-eight days after the declaration of independence, on August 3, 1975, a coalition of six political parties known as the United National Front overthrew the Abdallah government, with the aid of foreign mercenaries. Some observers claimed that French commercial interests, and possibly even the French government, had helped provide the funds and the matériel to bring off the coup. The reasons for the coup remain obscure, although the belief that France might return Mahoré if Abdallah were out of power appears to have been a contributing factor. Abdallah fled to Nzwani, his political power base, where he remained in control with an armed contingent of forty-five men until forces from Moroni recaptured the island and arrested him in late September 1975. After the coup, a three-man directorate took control. One of the three, Ali Soilih, was appointed minister of defense and justice and subsequently was made head of state by the Chamber of Deputies on January 3, 1976. Four days earlier, on December 31, 1975, France had formally recognized the independence of Comoros (minus Mahoré), but active relations, including all aid programs, which amounted to more than 40 percent of the national budget, remained suspended.

Comoros The Demise of Abdallah, 1989
Only weeks before the violent end of the Abdallah regime in late 1989, one observer noted that "Comoros is still run like a village, with a handful of tough men in charge and supported by foreign aid." As Comorans prepared for a November 4, 1989, referendum on constitutional changes that would enable President Abdallah to run for a third term in 1990, human rights remained in precarious condition, and the only avenue of economic advancement for most islanders--the civil service--faced cutbacks at the urging of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF--see Glossary). Even those who would keep their government jobs, however, were not guaranteed economic security. As often occurred whenever export earnings slid, civil servants had not been paid since mid-summer.

The official result of the referendum was a 92.5 percent majority in favor of the amendments proposed by Abdallah, which now created "the conditions for a life presidency," warned one opposition leader. Balloting was marked by the now customary manipulation by the government. Opposition groups reported that polling places lacked private voting booths, government officials blocked the entry of opposition poll watchers, and the army and police removed ballot boxes before voting ended. Reaction to these abuses was unusually angry. In Njazidja voters smashed ballot boxes rather than have them carted away by the army; the governor's office was set on fire in Nzwani, and a bomb was found outside the home of the minister of finance in Moroni. More than 100 people were arrested following the election, and in subsequent weeks the international media described a deteriorating situation in the islands; the head of state claimed that France "authorizes terrorism in the Comoros," and leaders of the banned opposition in bold public statements questioned the legitimacy of the referendum.

President Abdallah was shot to death on the night of November 26-27, reportedly while asleep in his residence, the Beit el Salama (House of Peace). At first his death was seen as a logical outcome of the tense political situation following what was, in effect, his self-appointment as head of state for life. The recently dismissed head of the Comoran military was duly blamed for the murder.

Evidence emerged subsequently that Abdallah's assassination resulted from the late president's proposed actions with regard to the GP. In September 1989, Abdallah had engaged a French military consultant, who determined that the GP should be absorbed into the regular army. Following consultations among Abdallah, the French government, and South Africa's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a decision was made to expel Denard and his fellow officers of the GP by the end of 1989. Denard and his second in command were seen walking with Abdallah only hours before he died. Although the mercenary initially blamed the assassination on the Comoran army, he later conceded that he was in Abdallah's office when the president was killed, but called the shooting "an accident due to the general state of mayhem" in the Beit al Salama (see Political Dynamics , this ch.).

Two days later, on November 29, the real reasons for the assassination emerged when Denard and the GP seized control of the government in a coup. Twenty-seven police officers were killed, hundreds of people were arrested, and all journalists were confined to their hotels. The mercenaries disarmed the regular army, ousted provisional president Haribon Chebani, who as chief of the Supreme Court had succeeded Abdallah, and installed Mohamed Said Djohar, who just three days earlier had become chief of the Supreme Court, as Comoros' third president in less than a week.

The immediate reaction of the republic's two main supporters, France and South Africa, was to isolate Denard. South Africa, admitting years of funding of the GP, cut off all aid. France began a military build-up on Mahoré and likewise suspended aid. On December 7, anti-Denard demonstrations by about 1,000 students and workers were violently broken up by the protests. By then the islands' school system had shut down, and the civil service had gone on strike. Faced with an untenable situation, Denard surrendered to French forces without a fight on December 15. Along with about two dozen comrades, he was flown to Pretoria and put under house arrest. The French government later announced that Denard would remain in detention in South Africa pending the outcome of a French judicial inquiry into Abdallah's death. In February 1993 he returned to France, where he was initially arrested, tried, and exonerated of involvement in the death of Abdallah.

Comoros The Issue of Mahoré
One of the touchiest issues in the negotiations between Comoros and France over independence in the early 1970s had been whether the 1974 referendum would be considered for the Comoros archipelago as a whole or on an island-by-island basis. Opposition to independence on Mahoré was organized by the Mayotte Popular Movement (Mouvement Populaire Mahorais--MPM), an organization that had been founded in the 1960s by Zeina M'Dere, a spokeswoman for Mahoré shopkeepers, mostly women, who had been affected economically when the colonial capital was moved from the Mahoré town of Dzaoudzi to Moroni on Njazidja in 1962.

The reasons behind Mahoré's 65 percent vote against independence were several. First, the people of Mahoré considered themselves culturally, religiously, and linguistically distinct from those of the other three islands; they felt that their long association with France (since 1841) had given their island a distinct Creole character like that of Reunion or Seychelles. Second, given Mahoré's smaller population, greater natural resources, and higher standard of living, the Mahorais thought that their island would be economically viable within a French union and ought not to be brought down to the level of the other three poorer islands. Third, most Mahorais apparently felt that Mahoré's future within a Comoran state would not be a comfortable one, given a perception of neglect that had begun with the much resented transfer of the capital.

In France and among conservatives on Reunion, the 1974 vote on Mahoré in favor of continued association with France was greeted with great enthusiasm. Comoran leaders, in contrast, accused the MPM and its leader, Marcel Henri, of fabricating the illusion of Mahorais "uniqueness" to preserve the power of Mahoré's non-Muslim, Creole elite. The issue poisoned Comoran relations with France, particularly because the Indian Ocean lobby, whose leaders included Reunion's deputy to the French National Assembly, Michel Debré, pushed for a "Mayotte française" (French Mayotte). Apparently leaning toward the interpretation that the December 1974 referendum was an island-by-island plebiscite, the French legislature voted in June 1975 to postpone independence for six months and hold a second referendum. The Abdallah government responded by declaring independence unilaterally on July 6, 1975, for all Comoro Islands, including Mahoré. France reacted by cutting off financial aid, which provided 41 percent of the national budget. Fearing a Comoran attempt to assert control of Mahoré forcibly, France sent members of the Foreign Legion from Reunion and a fleet of three vessels to patrol the waters around the island on July 6-7. On November 12, 1975, the UN General Assembly passed a resolution giving Comoros UN membership and recognized its claims to Mahoré, which France opposed.

French policy toward Mahoré had been, in the words of one observer, "to cultivate a more or less honest majority for reunification among the uncooperative Mahorais," particularly after the forthrightly anti-French regime of Ali Soilih ended in 1978. By contrast, the Mahorais' objective appeared to be full departmental status such as that of Reunion, where residents enjoyed full rights as French citizens. In a 1976 referendum, the Mahorais expressed dissatisfaction with their status as an overseas territory. France then created a new classification for Mahoré--territorial community (collectivité territoriale)--under which Mahoré was administered by a prefect appointed by the French government. Local government consisted of a popularly elected seventeen-member General Council. The island was entitled to send elected representatives to Paris, one each to the National Assembly and the Senate. The French franc served as the currency of the island. This status still applied in 1993.

After it appeared that Mahoré would not be tempted by the federalist design of Ahmed Abdallah's 1978 constitution to join the Republic of the Comoros, the National Assembly in Paris decided in 1979 to prolong the existence of the collectivité territoriale until a 1984 plebiscite, resolving meanwhile to study the situation and consult with the islanders. In late 1984, with an overwhelming vote to remain associated with France in the offing, the French government postponed the plebiscite indefinitely. By late 1993, it had still not been held, the Mahorais apparently still eager to remain part of France and as disinclined as ever to reunite with the three troubled islands to their immediate west.

Although many politically conservative French relished the Mahorais' popular vow that nous resterons français pour rester libre ("we will remain French to remain free"), the Mahoré situation caused some discomfort for France internationally. Every year, resolutions calling on France to relinquish Mahoré to Comoros passed with near unanimity in the UN, and the OAU likewise issued annual condemnations. Although Comoran official distaste for the situation became more muted in the 1980s and 1990s, the Comoran government continued to draw French attention to the issue. In May 1990, newly elected president Said Mohamed Djohar called for peaceful dialogue and French review of Mahoré's status. But feeling obligated not to change the Mahorais' status against their will, the French could do little. Anti-Comoran riots and demonstrations, and the formation of an anti-immigrant paramilitary group on Mahoré in response to the presence of illegal Comoran immigrants, were also sources of embarrassment to France.

The economy of Mahoré in some ways resembles that of Comoros. Rice, cassava, and corn are cultivated for domestic consumption; ylang-ylang and vanilla are the primary exports. The main imports, whose value far outstripped that of exports, are foodstuffs, machinery and appliances, transport equipment, and metals. Construction, primarily of French-funded public works, is the only industrial activity.

A five-year development plan (1986-91) focused on large-scale public projects, principally construction of a deepwater port at Longoni and an airport at the capital, Dzaoudzi. The plan and its two main projects were later extended through 1993. Despite Mahoré's great natural beauty, tourism was inhibited by a dearth of hotel rooms and the island's isolated location.

Under French administration, Mahoré had generally enjoyed domestic peace and stability, although tensions appeared to be rising by the early 1990s. In the summer of 1991, the relocation of people from their homes to allow the expansion of the airport met with vociferous protests, mostly by young people. The protests soon grew into violent demonstrations against the local government's administration of the island. Paramilitary attacks on Comoran immigrants occurred in June 1992, and a February 1993 general strike for higher wages ended in rioting. Security forces from Reunion and France were called in to restore order.

Comoros The Soilih Regime
Originally an agronomist, Ali Soilih had become politically active as a supporter of RDPC leader Said Ibrahim in 1970. Lasting from January 1976 to May 1978, his rule was marked by continued hostility between France and Comoros. The main issues were the status of Mahoré (particularly after France held a second referendum on the island, on February 7, 1976, in which 99.4 percent of the voters endorsed continued status as a French department) and a radical reform program designed to break the hold of traditional values and French influence on Comoran life. Soilih envisioned accomplishing his revolution in three phases, beginning with independence from France. The second phase, a "social revolution," would abolish such customs as the wearing of veils, the costly grand mariage (great wedding; in Swahili ndola nkuu), and traditional funeral ceremonies. Comoran citizens, including young women, would be mobilized to serve in revolutionary militia and army units in an attempt to create something resembling the Red Guards of China's Cultural Revolution of the late 1960s (see Society , this ch.). The third phase would decentralize government administration by establishing thirty-four local moudirias, or provinces. These would serve not only as administrative centers but would also provide post and telephone service and consumer goods for localities of about 9,000 people on the model of the Chinese people's communes.

Soilih emphasized the central role of young people in the revolution, lowering the voting age to fourteen. He mobilized Comoran youth into a special revolutionary militia (the Moissy), which particularly in the villages, launched violent attacks on conservative elders in Red Guard style (see Comoros , ch. 6).

After the withdrawal of French financial subsidies, the treasury was soon emptied, and in a move having budgetary as well as ideological implications, some 3,500 civil servants were dismissed in 1977. Soilih made a more than symbolic break with the past in 1976 by burning French government archives, which had been kept since the acquisition of Mahoré 135 years before. Tanzanian officers trained the Comoran Armed Forces, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), Saudi Arabia, and other countries provided limited aid.

Soilih, who described himself as a devout Muslim, advocated a secular state and limitations on the privileges of the muftis, or Muslim jurists who interpret Islamic law. These reforms, which were perceived as attacks on Comoran traditions, combined with a deepening economic crisis to erode support for his government. Several attempts were made on Soilih's life, and in a referendum held in October 1977, only 55 percent of the voters supported a new constitution proposed by his government. Attacks by the Moissy on real and imagined political opponents escalated; raids on mosques were common; a number of refugees fled to Mahoré. The eruption of Kartala in April 1977 and the influx of refugees from Madagascar following a massacre of resident Comorans there exacerbated the situation. In March 1978, some fishers in the town of Iconi, south of Moroni, were killed after protesting the government's policy on compulsory sale of their catch to the state. Severe food shortages in 1976-77 required the government to seek aid internationally and forced the young nation to divert its already limited export earnings from economic development to purchases of rice and other staples.

Popular support had dwindled to such a level that when a mercenary force of fifty, consisting largely of former French paratroopers, landed at Itsandra Beach north of the capital on May 12, 1978 the regular armed forces offered no resistance. The mercenaries were led by French-born Bob Denard (an alias for Gilbert Bourgeaud, also known as Said Mustapha M'Hadjou) a veteran of wars of revolution, counterrevolution, and separatism from Indochina to Biafra. (Ironically, Denard had played a role in the 1975 coup that had enabled Soilih to come to power.) Most Comorans supported the coup and were happy to be free of Soilih's ineffective and repressive regime. The deposed head of state was killed under mysterious circumstances on May 29, 1978. The official explanation was that he had attempted to escape.

Data as of August 1994


Comoros The Undermining of the Political Process
In February 1982, Comoros became a one-party state. The government designated Abdallah's newly formed Comoran Union for Progress (Union Comorienne pour le Progrès--UCP) as the republic's sole political party. Although unaffiliated individuals could run for local and national office, the only party that could organize on behalf of candidates henceforth would be the UCP. In March 1982 elections, all but one of Abdallah's handpicked UCP candidates won. UCP candidates likewise dominated the May 1983 National Assembly elections, and opposition candidates attempting to stand for election in balloting for the three islands' legislative councils in July were removed from the lists by the Ministry of Interior. Abdallah himself was elected to a second six-year term as head of state in September 1984, winning more than 99 percent of the vote as the sole candidate. During the National Assembly elections of March 22, 1987, the Abdallah regime arrested 400 poll watchers from opposition groups. A state radio announcement that one non-UCP delegate had been elected was retracted the next day.

Abdallah also kept opponents from competing with him in the arena of legitimate politics by reshuffling his government and amending the 1978 constitution. As part of what one observer wryly called the process of "remov[ing] his most avid successors from temptation," Abdallah pushed through a constitutional amendment in 1985 that abolished the post of prime minister, a move that made the president both head of state and head of the elected government. The amendment also diminished the status of Ali Mroudjae, the erstwhile prime minister and a likely future candidate for president. Another 1985 amendment took away many of the powers of the president of the National Assembly, including his right to become interim head of state in the event of the incumbent's death. The amendment transferred the right of succession to the president of the Supreme Court, an appointee of the head of state. Feeling the effect of this second amendment was assembly president Mohamed Taki, another man generally regarded as presidential timber.

Mroudjae's subsequent career in the Abdallah government illustrated the way in which Abdallah used frequent reshufflings of his cabinet to eliminate potential challengers. Mroudjae's next job was to share duties as minister of state with four other people; he was removed from the government altogether in another reshuffle four months later.

Looking to the end of his second (and, according to the constitution, final) term as head of state, Abdallah created a commission in 1988 to recommend changes to the constitution. These changes, among other things, would permit him to run yet again in 1990. A referendum on revisions to the constitution was scheduled for November 4, 1989.

A weak, divided, and opportunistic opposition facilitated Abdallah's efforts to undermine the political process. The character of Comoran politics ensured that opposition would be sustained by an unwieldy group of strong personalities. As the personal stock of these would-be leaders rose and fell, coalitions coalesced and just as quickly fell apart in a process that engendered distrust and cynicism. The ban on opposition political organizations at home--brutally upheld, when necessary, by the Presidential Guard (Garde Presidentelle--GP) and the Comoran military--further undercut efforts to organize against the head of state. The French government's displeasure at intrigues of Comoran exiles in Paris also complicated opposition efforts.

Given the absence of an ideological basis for resisting the regime, it was also not surprising that some opposition leaders were willing to ally themselves with the head of state if such a move appeared likely to advance them personally. For example, Mouzaoir Abdallah, leader of the opposition Union for a Democratic Republic in Comoros (Union pour une République Démocratique in Comores--URDC), appeared with the president at independence day celebrations in July 1988 amid rumors that the URDC chief was being considered for a reconstituted prime minister's office. In September 1988 another opposition leader, Said Hachim, agreed to join the commission considering revisions to the constitution.

The credibility of Abdallah's opponents was also damaged by the efforts of one opposition leader, former ambassador to France Said Ali Kemal, to recruit mercenaries to help overthrow the Abdallah government. Arrested in Australia in late 1983, six of the mercenaries gave testimony discrediting Kemal.

Data as of August 1994


Disintegrated. As a result, the RDR gained a total of twenty-two seats, and Djohar appointed RDR secretary general Mohamed Abdou Madi as prime Time and dates terminologies
SINGULAR PLURAL MEANING
SEGONDI SEGONDI SECOND / SECONDS
DAKIKA DAKIKA MINUTE / MINUTES
SAA SAA HOUR / HOURS
USIKU NTSIHU DAY / DAYS
MTSANA MITSANA DAYTIME / DAYTIMES
ASUBUHI ASUBUHI MORNING
MASIHU MASIHU NIGHT/ NIGHTS
DJIO MADJIO AFTERNOON / AFTERNOONS
MAHARIBI MAHARIBI SUNSET
ALFADJIRI ALFADJIRI DAWN
MFUMO MIFUMO WEEK / WEEKS
MWEZI MEZI MONTH / MONTHS
MWAHA MAHA YEAR / YEARS
KARNI KARNI CENTURY / CENTURIES
WAKATI NYAKATI SEASON
ASIHAZI NORTHERN WIND
KUSI SOUTHERN WIND
MBENI DRY SEASON
UPEPO UPEPO WIND
MGUGUMA MIGUGUMA STORM / STORMS
RAANDU RAANDU FIRE-STORMS
YIDJUNDU YIDJUNDU CYCLONE / CYCLONES
BINGU MAYINGU SKY/SKIES/CLOUD/CLOUDS
MVUA MVUA RAIN
LEO TODAY
DJANA YESTERDAY
JUZI DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY
MAUDU TOMORROW
USHAO DAY AFTER TOMORROW

Telling the time
The comorians have a particular way of telling the time. It begins at 7:00 AM and they call it "one in the morning" as it is the beginning of the morning.
The night begins at 7:00 PM which is considered as one in the evening.
In short, the night begins at 7:00 PM and end at 6:00 AM, then the day begins at 7:00 AM and end at 6:00 PM



Denouncing the proceedings, on January 17, 1994, thirteen opposition parties formed a combined Forum for National Recovery (Forum pour le Redressement National - FRN). The Udzima Party began broadcasting articles about Comoros appearing in the Indian Ocean Newsletter, including criticisms of the RDR. In consequence, its radio station, Voix des x les (Voice of the Islands) was confiscated by the government in mid-February 1994 - in September 1993, the radio station belonging to Abbas Djoussouf, who later became leader of the RDR, had been closed. Tensions increased, and in March 1994 an assassination attempt against Djohar occurred. At the end of May, civil service employees went on strike, including teachers, and violence erupted in mid-June when the FRN prepared to meet

ECONOMY
During the colonial period, the French and local leading citizens established plantations to grow cash crops for export. Even after independence, French companies, such as Société Bambao and ةtablissements Grimaldi--and other concerns, such as Kalfane and Company and later, President Abdallah's ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils--dominated the Comoran economy. These firms diverted most of their profits overseas, investing little in the infrastructure of the islands beyond what was needed for profitable management of the plantations, or what could benefit these businesses' associates or related concerns. A serious consequence of this approach has been the languishing of the food-crop agricultural sector and the resultant dependence on overseas food imports, particularly rice. In 1993 Comoros remained hostage to fluctuating prices on the international market for such crops as vanilla, ylang-ylang, and cloves.

Comoros is one of the world's poorest countries; its per capita gross national product (GNP) was estimated at US$400 in 1994, following the January devaluation of the Comoran franc. Although GNP increased in real terms at an average annual rate of 3.1 percent during the 1980s, rapid population growth effaced these gains and caused an average annual decrease in per capita GNP of 0.6 percent. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew in real terms by 4.2 percent per year from 1980 to 1985, 1.8 percent from 1985 to 1988, and 1.5 percent in 1990. In 1991, because of its balance of payments difficulties, Comoros became eligible for the IDA's Special Program of Assistance for debt-distressed countries of sub-Saharan Africa.

The economy is based on private ownership, frequently by foreign investors. Nationalization, even during the Soilih years, has been limited. Soilih did expropriate the facilities of a foreign oil company, but only after the government of Madagascar took over the company's plants in that country. The Abdallah government, despite its openness to foreign participation in the economy, nationalized the Société Bambao and another Frenchcapitalized firm, the Comoran Meat Company (Société Comorienne des Viandes--Socovia), which specialized in sales of meat and other foods in the islands. The nationalization was short-lived, however, because Socovia and other government-held enterprises were either liquidated or privatized as part of economic restructuring efforts in 1992.

Following the Abdallah regime's rapprochement with France in 1978, the Comoran economy became increasingly dependent on infusions of French aid, along with assistance from other governments and international organizations. By 1990, the year Comoros concluded negotiations with the IMF for an economic restructuring program, the republic's total external public debt was US$162.4 million, an amount equal to about three-quarters of GNP. The government delayed implementing the structural adjustment plan and was directed by the World Bank and the IMF to do so by September 1992. The plan recommendations entailed discharging about 2,800 of 9,000 civil servants, among other unpopular measures. The IMF granted Comoros a new credit for US$1.9 million in March 1994 under the Structural Adjustment Facility. For the period 1994-96, Comoros sought an economic growth rate of 4 percent as well as an inflation rate of 4 percent for 1995-96. The growth rate for 1994, however, was estimated only at 0.7 percent and the inflation rate at 15 percent. Meanwhile, in a move designed to encourage private enterprise and reduce unemployment, in May 1993 the UN Development Programme had given Comoros a credit of US$2 million for programs in these areas. In January 1994, the European Development Fund (EDF) granted 1.3 million European Currency Units (ECUs) to Comoros to develop small businesses. Comoros also received 5.7 million French francs from the French Aid and Cooperation Fund for agriculture and rural development.

The results of foreign aid to Comoros have been mixed at best. The purposes of the aid ranged from helping the government cover its payroll for such huge, seemingly endless projects as expanding the seaport at Moroni and developing a new port at Mutsamuda on Nzwani. Neither project had shown much promise by early 1994. Meanwhile, the islands have been unable to develop local resources or create the infrastructure needed for economic development. The few successes included the creation of national news media and limited improvements in public health, education, and telecommunications. Developmental assistance from the United States, which totaled US$700,000 in fiscal year (FY) 1991, was administered by CARE, the nongovernmental organization, and focused primarily on reforestation, soil conservation, and sustainable agriculture.

The overall effect of the republic's dependence on aid has been perennial trade deficits accompanied by chronic budget deficits. In 1992 total exports had a value of US$21 million, and total imports were valued at US$50 million. In 1991 receipts totaled about US$34.7 million (CF9.7 trillion; CF--Comoran franc) whereas expenditures totaled about US$93.8 million (CF26.2 trillion). The shortfall, which equaled about 170 percent of receipts, was financed by international grants and loans, by draws upon existing lines of credit, and by debt rescheduling.

In 1991 France received 55 percent of Comoran exports, followed by the United States (19 percent) and Germany (16 percent). The main export products were vanilla, ylang-ylang, and cloves. The republic's primary suppliers were France (56 percent of imports), the Belgium-Luxembourg economic union (11 percent), and Japan (5 percent). Imports consisted of basic foodstuffs (rice and meat), petroleum, and construction materials.

Comoros has officially participated in the African Franc Zone (Communauté Financière Africaine-- CFA) since 1979. The CFA franc was devalued by 50 percent on January 12, 1994, causing the exchange rate to become 100 CFA francs for one French franc. Subsequently, the Comoran franc was devalued so that instead of being directly aligned with the CFA franc, seventyfive Comoran francs equaled one French franc.

The banking system consists of the Central Bank of Comoros (Banque Centrale des Comores) established in 1981; the Bank for Industry and Commerce (Banque pour l'Industrie et le Commerce-- BIC), a commercial bank established in 1990 that had six branches in 1993 and was a subsidiary of the National Bank of Paris-- International (Banque Nationale de Paris--Internationale); BIC Afribank, a BIC subsidiary; and the Development Bank of Comoros (Banque de Développement des Comores), established in 1982, which provided support for small and midsize development projects. Most of the shares in the Development Bank of Comoros were held by the Comoran government and the central bank; the rest were held by the European Investment Bank and the Central Bank for Economic Cooperation (Caisse Centrale de Coopération ةconomique--CCCE), a development agency of the French government. All of these banks had headquarters in Moroni.

A national labor organization, the Union of Comoran Workers (Union des Travailleurs des Comores), also had headquarters in Moroni. Strikes and worker demonstrations often occurred in response to political crises, economic restructuring mandated by international financial organizations, and the failure of the government--occasionally for months at a time--to pay civil servants.

For more recent information about the economy, see
Food & drink
All water should be regarded as being potentially contaminated. Water used for drinking, brushing teeth or making ice should have first been boiled or otherwise sterilized. Milk is unpasteurized and should be boiled. Powdered or tinned milk is available and is advised, but make sure that it is reconstituted with pure water. Avoid dairy products which are likely to have been made from unboiled milk. Only eat well-cooked meat and fish, preferably served hot. Pork, salad and mayonnaise may carry increased risk. Vegetables should be cooked and fruit peeled.

Other risks
Hepatitis A and E are widespread. Hepatitis B is hyperendemic. Both cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis may be found. Outbreaks of yellow fever occur periodically.

Health care
There is no reciprocal health agreement with the UK. Medical facilities are basic and most are private. In order to secure even basic medical care, visitors are strongly advised to take out comprehensive health insurance.

Some travelers from areas infected with yellow fever have been asked to provide vaccination certificates, but this is not an official policy.

2
Following WHO guidelines issued in 1973, a cholera vaccination certificate is not an official condition of entry to the Comoro Islands. However, outbreaks of cholera still occur periodically. Up-to-date advice should be sought before deciding whether precautions should include vaccination, as medical opinion is divided over its effectiveness.

3
Typhoid fevers are present.

4
Malaria risk exists all year throughout the whole country, predominantly in the malignant falciparum form. Resistance to chloroquine has been reported. The recommended prophylaxis is mefloquine. There have been cases of Dengue fever reported on Grande Comore. Travelers should take strict prevention measures against mosquito bites, by using repellents and by wearing sleeved shirts and long trousers.

Foreign Affairs
Comoros' most significant international relationship is that with France. The three years of estrangement following the unilateral declaration of independence and the nationalistic Soilih regime were followed during the conservative Abdallah and Djohar regimes by a period of growing trade, aid, cultural, and defense links between the former colony and France, punctuated by frequent visits to Paris by the head of state and occasional visits by the French president to Moroni. The leading military power in the region, France has detachments on Mahoré and Reunion, and its Indian Ocean fleet sails the waters around the islands. France and Comoros signed a mutual security treaty in 1978; following the mercenary coup against Abdallah in 1989, French troops restored order and took responsibility for reorganizing and training the Comoran army. With Mahoré continuing to gravitate politically and economically toward France, and Comoros increasingly dependent on the French for help with its own considerable social, political, and economic problems, the issue of Mahoré diminished somewhat in urgency.

The close relationship Comoros developed with South Africa in the 1980s was much less significant to both countries in the 1990s. With the reform of its apartheid government, South Africa no longer needed Comoros as evidence of its ostensible ability to enjoy good relations with a black African state; the end of the Cold War had also diminished Comoros' strategic value to Pretoria. Although South Africa continued to provide developmental aid, it closed its consulate in Moroni in 1992. Since the 1989 coup and subsequent expulsion of South Africanfinanced mercenaries, Comoros likewise turned away from South Africa and toward France for assistance with its security needs.

The government fostered close relationships with the more conservative (and oil-rich) Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. It frequently received aid from those countries and the regional financial institutions they influenced, such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development. In October 1993, Comoros joined the League of Arab States, after having been rejected when it applied for membership initially in 1977.

Regional relations generally were good. In 1985 Madagascar, Mauritius, and Seychelles agreed to admit Comoros as the fourth member of the Indian Ocean Commission (IOC), an organization established in 1982 to encourage regional cooperation. In 1993 Mauritius and Seychelles had two of the five embassies in Moroni, and Mauritius and Madagascar were connected to the republic by regularly scheduled commercial flights.

Comoros also hosted an embassy of China, which established relations during the Soilih regime. The Chinese had long been a source of aid and apparently wished to maintain contact with Comoros to counterbalance Indian and Soviet (later Russian) influence in the Indian Ocean. Comoran relations with Japan were also significant because Japan was the second largest provider of aid, consisting of funding for fisheries, food, and highway development. The United States established diplomatic relations in 1977 but in September 1993 closed it embassy in Moroni. The two countries enjoy friendly relations.

In November 1975, Comoros became the 143d member of the UN. In the 1990s, the republic continued to represent Mahoré in the UN. Comoros was also a member of the OAU, the EDF, the World Bank, the IMF, the IOC, and the African Development Bank.

Comoros thus cultivated relations with various nations, both East and West, seeking to increase trade and obtain financial assistance. In 1994, however, it was increasingly facing the need to control its expenditures and reorganize its economy so that it would be viewed as a sounder recipient of investment. Comoros also confronted domestically the problem of the degree of democracy the government was prepared to grant to its citizens, a consideration that related to its standing in the world community.

Formerly attached to Madagascar, the Comoros became a separate French Overseas Territory in 1947. The islands achieved internal self-government in December 1961, with a Chamber of Deputies and a Government Council responsible for local administration.

Elections in December 1972 resulted in a large majority for parties advocating independence, and Ahmed Abdallah became President of the Government Council. In June 1973 he was restyled President of the Government.

At a referendum in December 1974 96% of the voters expressed support for independence, despite the opposition of the Mayotte Party, which sought the status of a French Department for the island of Mayotte.

On 3 August 1997 the "political directorate" unilaterally declared Nzwani´s secession from the Comoros, despite an earlier proposal made by Taki to decentralize power and give increased autonomy to the islands.

The separatists subsequently elected Ibrahim as president of a 13-member "politico-administrative co-ordination" which included Abdou Madi, a former Prime Minister during Djohar´s presidency, as spokesperson.

The declaration of independence was condemned by Djoussouf who appealed for French mediation in the crisis. France, however, while denoucing the secession, declared itself in favour of the intervention of the OAU.

The OAU responded by sending a special envoy, Pierre Yéré (Cote d´Ivoire´s ambassador to Ethiopia and the OAU), to the Comoros. Meanwhile, separatist: movements on Mwali held demonstrations, erecting barricades and raising the French flag.

Separatist activity intensified, and on 11 August secessionists declared Mwali´s independence from the Comoros, appointed a president and a prime minister to head a 12-member government, and called for reattachment to France.
FRACTIONS, DECIMALS AND PERCENTAGES
FRACTIONS

NUSU HALF (1/2)
ROBOO QUARTER (1/4)
THUMUNI ONE EIGTH (1/8)
SEHEMU YA RARU ONE THIRD (1/3)
SEHEMU YA SITA ONE SISTH (1/6)

DECIMALS:

2.01MBILI NUKTWA HATAT NDZIMA
30.60 = THALATHINI NUKTWA SITINI

PERCENTAGES

NDZIMA HARUMWA DJANA = 1 %
KUME HARUMWA DJANA = 10 %
ISHIRINI HARUMWA DJANA = 20 %
MENGO MITSANU NA NTSANU HARUMWA DJANA = 55 %
MENGO SHENDA NA SHENDA HARUMWA DJANA = 99 %
DJANA HARUMWA DJANA = 100 %


ORDINAL NUMBERS


YA MWANDO / YA HANDA FIRST
YA PVILI SECOND
YA RARU THIRD
YA NNE FOURTH
YA NTSANU FIFTH
YA SITA / YA NDRADARU SIXTH
YA SABA / YA FUKARI SEVENTH
YA NANE EIGHTH
YA SHENDA NINTH
YA KUME TENTH
YA KUME NA MWEDJA ELEVENTH
YA KUME NA MBILI TWELVETH
YA KUME NA SHENDA NINETEENTH
YA ISHIRINI TWETIETH
YA THALATHINI FORTIETH
YA TISINI NINETIETH
YA MIA / YA DJANA HUNDREDTH
"YA" is not the only preposition used with the ordinal numbers; there are others which are used accordingly to the nature of the noun used.
Examples:

Hadisi "ya" mwando = the first story
Shatri "la" pvili = the second shirt
Yitranda "sha" sita = the sixth bed
Mhono "wa" pvili = the second hand

ARITHMETICS

The signs

+ Hudjumlisa (to combine) / hwendjeza (to add)
- Hupvunguza (to substract )
X Huzidisha (to multiply)
÷ Hwanyisa (to divide)


GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
In common with a few other places, such as the wine-growing areas of France, one of the key attractions of the Comoros is its main non-tourist commercial activity. The islands' vegetation is rich and varied: 65 per cent of the world's perfume essence comes from the Comoros, being processed from the blossoms of ylang-ylang, jasmine and orange. Spices, including nutmeg, cloves, pepper, basil and vanilla, are another mainstay of the economy. Ylang-ylang base has uses in hairdressing, the treatment of rheumatism and, mixed with coconut oil, as sun cream. For further information on the Comoro Islands' economy, see the Business Profile section.



Ngazidja (Grande Comore)
The capital Moroni is a charming, peaceful town containing a few broad squares and modern government buildings, as well as old, narrow, winding streets and a market place. There are numerous fine mosques including the Vendredi Mosque, from the top of which there is an attractive view.
The more energetic may climb to the top of Mount Karthala and then descend into the crater of this active volcano. The crater is claimed to be the largest still active anywhere in the world. It is usual to make one overnight stop at the shelter provided. The Karthala volcano erupted in 2003 and it may be worth checking the situation between traveling to this part of the island.
Itsandra, a fishing village 6km (4 miles) from Moroni, has a fine beach and there are opportunities to see dances performed by the local men. The town was once the ancient capital of the island, complete with royal tombs and a fortress.
There are hot sulphur springs at Lac Salé and a 14th-century village at Iconi. Mitsamiouli, a town in the north of the island, is known both for its good diving facilities and for having the best Comoran dancers. There are many bats and spiders on the island, the former often appearing in broad daylight.

Mwali (Mohéli)
Dhows (Arab sail boats) are built on the beach at Fomboni on the smallest of the main islands. There is a fine waterfall at Miringoni. Giant turtles may be seen at Niumashuwa Bay.

Nzwani (Anjouan)
This island is notable for its waterfalls and abundant vegetation. The main town of Mutsamudu is built in Swahili-Shirazi style, complete with 17th-century houses with carved doors, twisting alleyways, mosques and a citadel. The ancient capital of Domoni is also worth a visit. The best beaches are in the Bimbini area. There are perfume distilleries at Bambao.

Mahore (Mayotte)
This French-administered island is surrounded by a coral reef and has good beaches and excellent scuba-diving facilities. Tourists may explore the lagoon (claimed to be the largest in the world) by dugout canoe. The town of Dzaoudzi contains some old fortifications worthy of a visit. Pamanzi is a forested islet 5km (3 miles) offshore, fragrant with a wealth of vegetation. At Sulu, a waterfall plunges straight into the sea. There are the remains of an old mosque at Tsingoni. Elsewhere, there are 19th-century sugar refineries. For further information, see the French Overseas Possessions section.

Note
Travel to Mayotte from the Comoros Islands may be problematic owing to the fact that this is disputed territory.

In the early 15th century, the Arabs settled on the islands, each of which was ruled by separate sultanates. The islands were ceded to the French in 1841. They became a French protectorate in 1886 before being formally adopted as colonial possessions in 1912. The Comoros were then governed as part of Madagascar until 1947 when they became a separate French Overseas Territory.

Internal self-government was granted in 1961, although full independence was not achieved until 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli. Ahmed Abdallah was elected as the first president. Within months, the instability which has characterized post-independence politics on the islands took effect as Abdallah was overthrown by a coup led by Ali Soilih. In 1978, with the assistance of French mercenaries, Abdallah regained his position with another coup, but his success was short-lived as he was assassinated the following year.

Abdallah's successor, Said Mohamed Djohar, managed to hold onto power in the face of both coup attempts and domestic political crises before the return in 1995 of the Comoros Islands' nemesis, Bob Denard, the leader of the mercenary group that had installed Abdallah in 1978. Although Denard's latest effort was suppressed a week later by French troops dispatched from Réunion, Djohar was killed. By 1996, the situation had calmed sufficiently for scheduled elections to take place. The new Government of Abdulkarim Taki was determined to introduce Islamic law to the islands. This was fiercely resisted in many quarters, especially on the outlying islands of Anjouan and Moheli, which now sought independence from the Comoros group. The pair seceded in August 1997 but have since returned to the national fold. President Taki died in 1998, and was replaced by Ben Said Massounde. The new government proved unable to settle the ongoing political crisis and in May 1999 was overthrown in a military coup led by the Chief of the Army General Staff, Colonel Azzali Assoumani. During the next two years, the military government laid plans for a new constitution that would maintain the group as a single country, but with much greater autonomy afforded to the individual islands. In December 2001, it was approved in a national referendum. In May 2002, after several weeks' delay, Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election. By mid-2003, the new government had faced just a single coup plot.

Government
Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a 6-year term. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Economy
The bulk of the working population is employed in agriculture, which produces vanilla and cloves (the main exports), basil, ylang-ylang (an essence extracted from trees) and copra. There is a small fishing industry and a minimal industrial base devoted mainly to processing vanilla. The tourism industry has grown rapidly during the last 10 years to the extent that the service sector as a whole now accounts for almost 60 per cent of total domestic output: chronic political instability on the islands has, however, probably prevented the industry from reaching its full potential. Moreover, the agricultural economy is vulnerable to low world commodity prices. Substantial French aid remains essential. France is also the country's major trading partner, providing almost half of the Comoros' imports and taking two-thirds of its exports. China, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar are the other major importers into the islands. Per capita income is estimated at US$450 (World Bank, 2003). The economy grew slowly at 2.5 per cent (est. 2002).

In the early 15th century, the Arabs settled on the islands, each of which was ruled by separate sultanates. The islands were ceded to the French in 1841. They became a French protectorate in 1886 before being formally adopted as colonial possessions in 1912. The Comoros were then governed as part of Madagascar until 1947 when they became a separate French Overseas Territory.

Internal self-government was granted in 1961, although full independence was not achieved until 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli. Ahmed Abdallah was elected as the first president. Within months, the instability which has characterized post-independence politics on the islands took effect as Abdallah was overthrown by a coup led by Ali Soilih. In 1978, with the assistance of French mercenaries, Abdallah regained his position with another coup, but his success was short-lived as he was assassinated the following year.

Abdallah's successor, Said Mohamed Djohar, managed to hold onto power in the face of both coup attempts and domestic political crises before the return in 1995 of the Comoros Islands' nemesis, Bob Denard, the leader of the mercenary group that had installed Abdallah in 1978. Although Denard's latest effort was suppressed a week later by French troops dispatched from Réunion, Djohar was killed. By 1996, the situation had calmed sufficiently for scheduled elections to take place. The new Government of Abdulkarim Taki was determined to introduce Islamic law to the islands. This was fiercely resisted in many quarters, especially on the outlying islands of Anjouan and Moheli, which now sought independence from the Comoros group. The pair seceded in August 1997 but have since returned to the national fold. President Taki died in 1998, and was replaced by Ben Said Massounde. The new government proved unable to settle the ongoing political crisis and in May 1999 was overthrown in a military coup led by the Chief of the Army General Staff, Colonel Azzali Assoumani. During the next two years, the military government laid plans for a new constitution that would maintain the group as a single country, but with much greater autonomy afforded to the individual islands. In December 2001, it was approved in a national referendum. In May 2002, after several weeks' delay, Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election. By mid-2003, the new government had faced just a single coup plot.

Government
Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a 6-year term. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Economy
The bulk of the working population is employed in agriculture, which produces vanilla and cloves (the main exports), basil, ylang-ylang (an essence extracted from trees) and copra. There is a small fishing industry and a minimal industrial base devoted mainly to processing vanilla. The tourism industry has grown rapidly during the last 10 years to the extent that the service sector as a whole now accounts for almost 60 per cent of total domestic output: chronic political instability on the islands has, however, probably prevented the industry from reaching its full potential. Moreover, the agricultural economy is vulnerable to low world commodity prices. Substantial French aid remains essential. France is also the country's major trading partner, providing almost half of the Comoros' imports and taking two-thirds of its exports. China, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar are the other major importers into the islands. Per capita income is estimated at US$450 (World Bank, 2003). The economy grew slowly at 2.5 per cent (est. 2002).

In the early 15th century, the Arabs settled on the islands, each of which was ruled by separate sultanates. The islands were ceded to the French in 1841. They became a French protectorate in 1886 before being formally adopted as colonial possessions in 1912. The Comoros were then governed as part of Madagascar until 1947 when they became a separate French Overseas Territory.

Internal self-government was granted in 1961, although full independence was not achieved until 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli. Ahmed Abdallah was elected as the first president. Within months, the instability which has characterized post-independence politics on the islands took effect as Abdallah was overthrown by a coup led by Ali Soilih. In 1978, with the assistance of French mercenaries, Abdallah regained his position with another coup, but his success was short-lived as he was assassinated the following year.

Abdallah's successor, Said Mohamed Djohar, managed to hold onto power in the face of both coup attempts and domestic political crises before the return in 1995 of the Comoros Islands' nemesis, Bob Denard, the leader of the mercenary group that had installed Abdallah in 1978. Although Denard's latest effort was suppressed a week later by French troops dispatched from Réunion, Djohar was killed. By 1996, the situation had calmed sufficiently for scheduled elections to take place. The new Government of Abdulkarim Taki was determined to introduce Islamic law to the islands. This was fiercely resisted in many quarters, especially on the outlying islands of Anjouan and Moheli, which now sought independence from the Comoros group. The pair seceded in August 1997 but have since returned to the national fold. President Taki died in 1998, and was replaced by Ben Said Massounde. The new government proved unable to settle the ongoing political crisis and in May 1999 was overthrown in a military coup led by the Chief of the Army General Staff, Colonel Azzali Assoumani. During the next two years, the military government laid plans for a new constitution that would maintain the group as a single country, but with much greater autonomy afforded to the individual islands. In December 2001, it was approved in a national referendum. In May 2002, after several weeks' delay, Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election. By mid-2003, the new government had faced just a single coup plot.

Government
Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a 6-year term. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Economy
The bulk of the working population is employed in agriculture, which produces vanilla and cloves (the main exports), basil, ylang-ylang (an essence extracted from trees) and copra. There is a small fishing industry and a minimal industrial base devoted mainly to processing vanilla. The tourism industry has grown rapidly during the last 10 years to the extent that the service sector as a whole now accounts for almost 60 per cent of total domestic output: chronic political instability on the islands has, however, probably prevented the industry from reaching its full potential. Moreover, the agricultural economy is vulnerable to low world commodity prices. Substantial French aid remains essential. France is also the country's major trading partner, providing almost half of the Comoros' imports and taking two-thirds of its exports. China, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar are the other major importers into the islands. Per capita income is estimated at US$450 (World Bank, 2003). The economy grew slowly at 2.5 per cent (est. 2002).

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
The Constitution of the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros was approved by referendum on June 7, 1992. It replaced the constitution of 1978, as amended in 1982 and 1985. Among the general principles enumerated in the preamble are the recognition of Islam as the state religion and respect for human rights as set forth in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. All citizens are declared equal before the law.

The president is elected by direct universal suffrage to a five-year term and is limited to two terms. All persons over the age of eighteen who possess full civil and political rights may vote. The president may be elected to no more than two terms. The president is both head of state and head of government. The president nominates ministers to form the Council of Government, which had twelve members in the latter half of 1994. The ministries, which are routinely reshuffled, merged, eliminated, and resurrected, consisted of the following at that time: the prime minister, who also served as minister of civil service; Economy, Plan, Industry, and Handicrafts; Equipment, Energy, Urbanization, and Housing; Finance and Budget; Foreign Affairs and Cooperation; Information, Culture, Youth, Sports, and Posts and Telecommunication; Islamic Affairs and Justice; National Education and Technical and Professional Teaching; Public Health; Rural Development, Fisheries, and the Environment; Social Affairs, Work, and Employment; and Transportation and Tourism. The president also nominates governors for each of the three islands for five-year terms. If the presidency becomes vacant, the president of the Supreme Court serves as interim president until an election can be held.

The constitution provides for a bicameral legislature. The forty-two members of the "lower" house, the Federal Assembly, represent electoral wards for four-year terms. The Federal Assembly meets for two forty-five-day sessions per year, in April and October. The upper house, the Senate, has fifteen members, five from each island, who are chosen by an Electoral College. The post of prime minister is held by a member of the party holding a majority of seats in the Federal Assembly. The number of political parties may be regulated by federal law. In 1994 more than twenty political parties were active. Areas subject to federal legislation include defense, communications, law, international trade, federal taxation, economic planning, and social services.

As a federal republic, Comoros assigns autonomy to the three constituent islands in matters that, in accordance with the constitution, do not come within the purview of the national government. Each island has a council whose members are elected to represent electoral wards for four-year terms. Normally, each council meets twice yearly, in March and December, for a fifteenday session.

The judiciary is considered independent of the executive and legislature. The Supreme Court examines constitutional issues and supervises presidential elections. The high court also arbitrates when the government is accused of malpractice. The Supreme Court normally consists of at least seven members: two chosen by the president, two elected by the Federal Assembly, and three chosen by the respective island councils. Former presidents also may serve on the high court.

For more information about the governmen
In common with a few other places, such as the wine-growing areas of France, one of the key attractions of the Comoros is its main non-tourist commercial activity. The islands' vegetation is rich and varied: 65 per cent of the world's perfume essence comes from the Comoros, being processed from the blossoms of ylang-ylang, jasmine and orange. Spices, including nutmeg, cloves, pepper, basil and vanilla, are another mainstay of the economy. Ylang-ylang base has uses in hairdressing, the treatment of rheumatism and, mixed with coconut oil, as sun cream. For further information on the Comoro Islands' economy, see the Business Profile section.



Ngazidja (Grande Comore)
The capital Moroni is a charming, peaceful town containing a few broad squares and modern government buildings, as well as old, narrow, winding streets and a market place. There are numerous fine mosques including the Vendredi Mosque, from the top of which there is an attractive view.
The more energetic may climb to the top of Mount Karthala and then descend into the crater of this active volcano. The crater is claimed to be the largest still active anywhere in the world. It is usual to make one overnight stop at the shelter provided. The Karthala volcano erupted in 2003 and it may be worth checking the situation between traveling to this part of the island.
Itsandra, a fishing village 6km (4 miles) from Moroni, has a fine beach and there are opportunities to see dances performed by the local men. The town was once the ancient capital of the island, complete with royal tombs and a fortress.
There are hot sulphur springs at Lac Salé and a 14th-century village at Iconi. Mitsamiouli, a town in the north of the island, is known both for its good diving facilities and for having the best Comoran dancers. There are many bats and spiders on the island, the former often appearing in broad daylight.

Mwali (Mohéli)
Dhows (Arab sail boats) are built on the beach at Fomboni on the smallest of the main islands. There is a fine waterfall at Miringoni. Giant turtles may be seen at Niumashuwa Bay.

Nzwani (Anjouan)
This island is notable for its waterfalls and abundant vegetation. The main town of Mutsamudu is built in Swahili-Shirazi style, complete with 17th-century houses with carved doors, twisting alleyways, mosques and a citadel. The ancient capital of Domoni is also worth a visit. The best beaches are in the Bimbini area. There are perfume distilleries at Bambao.

Mahore (Mayotte)
This French-administered island is surrounded by a coral reef and has good beaches and excellent scuba-diving facilities. Tourists may explore the lagoon (claimed to be the largest in the world) by dugout canoe. The town of Dzaoudzi contains some old fortifications worthy of a visit. Pamanzi is a forested islet 5km (3 miles) offshore, fragrant with a wealth of vegetation. At Sulu, a waterfall plunges straight into the sea. There are the remains of an old mosque at Tsingoni. Elsewhere, there are 19th-century sugar refineries. For further information, see the French Overseas Possessions section.

Note
Travel to Mayotte from the Comoros Islands may be problematic owing to the fact that this is disputed territory.

In the early 15th century, the Arabs settled on the islands, each of which was ruled by separate sultanates. The islands were ceded to the French in 1841. They became a French protectorate in 1886 before being formally adopted as colonial possessions in 1912. The Comoros were then governed as part of Madagascar until 1947 when they became a separate French Overseas Territory.

Internal self-government was granted in 1961, although full independence was not achieved until 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli. Ahmed Abdallah was elected as the first president. Within months, the instability which has characterized post-independence politics on the islands took effect as Abdallah was overthrown by a coup led by Ali Soilih. In 1978, with the assistance of French mercenaries, Abdallah regained his position with another coup, but his success was short-lived as he was assassinated the following year.

Abdallah's successor, Said Mohamed Djohar, managed to hold onto power in the face of both coup attempts and domestic political crises before the return in 1995 of the Comoros Islands' nemesis, Bob Denard, the leader of the mercenary group that had installed Abdallah in 1978. Although Denard's latest effort was suppressed a week later by French troops dispatched from Réunion, Djohar was killed. By 1996, the situation had calmed sufficiently for scheduled elections to take place. The new Government of Abdulkarim Taki was determined to introduce Islamic law to the islands. This was fiercely resisted in many quarters, especially on the outlying islands of Anjouan and Moheli, which now sought independence from the Comoros group. The pair seceded in August 1997 but have since returned to the national fold. President Taki died in 1998, and was replaced by Ben Said Massounde. The new government proved unable to settle the ongoing political crisis and in May 1999 was overthrown in a military coup led by the Chief of the Army General Staff, Colonel Azzali Assoumani. During the next two years, the military government laid plans for a new constitution that would maintain the group as a single country, but with much greater autonomy afforded to the individual islands. In December 2001, it was approved in a national referendum. In May 2002, after several weeks' delay, Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election. By mid-2003, the new government had faced just a single coup plot.

Government
Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a 6-year term. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Economy
The bulk of the working population is employed in agriculture, which produces vanilla and cloves (the main exports), basil, ylang-ylang (an essence extracted from trees) and copra. There is a small fishing industry and a minimal industrial base devoted mainly to processing vanilla. The tourism industry has grown rapidly during the last 10 years to the extent that the service sector as a whole now accounts for almost 60 per cent of total domestic output: chronic political instability on the islands has, however, probably prevented the industry from reaching its full potential. Moreover, the agricultural economy is vulnerable to low world commodity prices. Substantial French aid remains essential. France is also the country's major trading partner, providing almost half of the Comoros' imports and taking two-thirds of its exports. China, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar are the other major importers into the islands. Per capita income is estimated at US$450 (World Bank, 2003). The economy grew slowly at 2.5 per cent (est. 2002).

In the early 15th century, the Arabs settled on the islands, each of which was ruled by separate sultanates. The islands were ceded to the French in 1841. They became a French protectorate in 1886 before being formally adopted as colonial possessions in 1912. The Comoros were then governed as part of Madagascar until 1947 when they became a separate French Overseas Territory.

Internal self-government was granted in 1961, although full independence was not achieved until 1975, despite consistent pressure on the French from the islands' Government. The main reason was the position of Mayotte, one of the original Comoros island group, which insisted upon retaining its links with France. With Mayotte going its own way, the Comoros joined the United Nations as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, comprising three islands: Grande Comore, Anjouan and Moheli. Ahmed Abdallah was elected as the first president. Within months, the instability which has characterized post-independence politics on the islands took effect as Abdallah was overthrown by a coup led by Ali Soilih. In 1978, with the assistance of French mercenaries, Abdallah regained his position with another coup, but his success was short-lived as he was assassinated the following year.

Abdallah's successor, Said Mohamed Djohar, managed to hold onto power in the face of both coup attempts and domestic political crises before the return in 1995 of the Comoros Islands' nemesis, Bob Denard, the leader of the mercenary group that had installed Abdallah in 1978. Although Denard's latest effort was suppressed a week later by French troops dispatched from Réunion, Djohar was killed. By 1996, the situation had calmed sufficiently for scheduled elections to take place. The new Government of Abdulkarim Taki was determined to introduce Islamic law to the islands. This was fiercely resisted in many quarters, especially on the outlying islands of Anjouan and Moheli, which now sought independence from the Comoros group. The pair seceded in August 1997 but have since returned to the national fold. President Taki died in 1998, and was replaced by Ben Said Massounde. The new government proved unable to settle the ongoing political crisis and in May 1999 was overthrown in a military coup led by the Chief of the Army General Staff, Colonel Azzali Assoumani. During the next two years, the military government laid plans for a new constitution that would maintain the group as a single country, but with much greater autonomy afforded to the individual islands. In December 2001, it was approved in a national referendum. In May 2002, after several weeks' delay, Assoumani was declared President of the newly entitled Union of Comoros – which includes Anjouan and Moheli – after a disputed election. By mid-2003, the new government had faced just a single coup plot.

Government
Following the military coup of May 1999, the existing 1996 constitution and the Federal Assembly were suspended. A new constitution allowing for greater autonomy and individual elected administrations on each of the islands was introduced in 2002. Executive power is in the hands of the President, who is elected for a 6-year term. Under the new constitutional arrangements, each island Governor may appoint eight Ministers to deal with local affairs, whilst the Union authorities will control foreign affairs, finance, defense, justice and religious matters. However, there remained areas where the division of authority was unclear, resulting in the signature of an agreement in 2003 to resolve the crisis. As a result, parliamentary elections were held in 2004. The majority of seats were won by island rather than state candidates.

Economy
The bulk of the working population is employed in agriculture, which produces vanilla and cloves (the main exports), basil, ylang-ylang (an essence extracted from trees) and copra. There is a small fishing industry and a minimal industrial base devoted mainly to processing vanilla. The tourism industry has grown rapidly during the last 10 years to the extent that the service sector as a whole now accounts for almost 60 per cent of total domestic output: chronic political instability on the islands has, however, probably prevented the industry from reaching its full potential. Moreover, the agricultural economy is vulnerable to low world commodity prices. Substantial French aid remains essential. France is also the country's major trading partner, providing almost half of the Comoros' imports and taking two-thirds of its exports. China, Kenya, Tanzania and Madagascar are the other major importers into the islands. Per capita income is estimated at US$450 (World Bank, 2003). The economy grew slowly at 2.5 per cent (est. 2002).

Industry and Infrastructure
Industrial activities are responsible for only a tiny portion of Comoran economic activity--about 5 percent of GDP in 1994. Principal industries are those that involve processing cash crops for export: preparing vanilla and distilling ylang-ylang into perfume essence. These activities were once controlled almost entirely by French companies, but as they closed unprofitable plantations, individual farmers set up many small, inefficient distilleries. Comorans also produce handicrafts for export. Other industries are small and geared to internal markets: sawmills, printing, carpentry, and the production of shoes, plastics, yogurt, handicrafts (such as the jewelry exchanged as part of the grand mariage), and small fishing boats. Several factors provide major obstacles to the growth of industry: the islands' geographically isolated position, their distance from each other, a scarcity of raw materials and skilled labor, and the high cost of electricity (energy is produced by hydropower, imported petroleum, and wood products) and transportation. Value added in industry slowly declined throughout the 1980s.

Perhaps the primary outcome of South African penetration of the Comoran economy during the Abdallah regime was the development of tourism. Although South African investors built or renovated several hotels during the 1980s (with assistance from the South African and Comoran governments), only one resort, the 182-room Galawa Beach on Njazidja, was operating by late 1992. About 100 other hotel rooms were available on the islands. Political instability, a declining South African interest in the islands as the apartheid regime was disassembled and other tropical tourism venues became more welcoming, and the need to import most construction materials and consumable supplies inhibited the growth of tourism, despite the islands' physical beauty. Nonetheless, in large part thanks to Galawa Beach, which had been closed during 1990, tourism increased from 7,627 visitors in 1990 to 16,942 in 1991. Most of these tourists were Europeans, primarily French.

Industry and Infrastructure
Industrial activities are responsible for only a tiny portion of Comoran economic activity--about 5 percent of GDP in 1994. Principal industries are those that involve processing cash crops for export: preparing vanilla and distilling ylang-ylang into perfume essence. These activities were once controlled almost entirely by French companies, but as they closed unprofitable plantations, individual farmers set up many small, inefficient distilleries. Comorans also produce handicrafts for export. Other industries are small and geared to internal markets: sawmills, printing, carpentry, and the production of shoes, plastics, yogurt, handicrafts (such as the jewelry exchanged as part of the grand mariage), and small fishing boats. Several factors provide major obstacles to the growth of industry: the islands' geographically isolated position, their distance from each other, a scarcity of raw materials and skilled labor, and the high cost of electricity (energy is produced by hydropower, imported petroleum, and wood products) and transportation. Value added in industry slowly declined throughout the 1980s.

Perhaps the primary outcome of South African penetration of the Comoran economy during the Abdallah regime was the development of tourism. Although South African investors built or renovated several hotels during the 1980s (with assistance from the South African and Comoran governments), only one resort, the 182-room Galawa Beach on Njazidja, was operating by late 1992. About 100 other hotel rooms were available on the islands. Political instability, a declining South African interest in the islands as the apartheid regime was disassembled and other tropical tourism venues became more welcoming, and the need to import most construction materials and consumable supplies inhibited the growth of tourism, despite the islands' physical beauty. Nonetheless, in large part thanks to Galawa Beach, which had been closed during 1990, tourism increased from 7,627 visitors in 1990 to 16,942 in 1991. Most of these tourists were Europeans, primarily French.

: Industry and Infrastructure
Industrial activities are responsible for only a tiny portion of Comoros economic activity--about 5 percent of GDP in 1994. Principal industries are those that involve processing cash crops for export: preparing vanilla and distilling ylang-ylang into perfume essence. These activities were once controlled almost entirely by French companies, but as they closed unprofitable plantations, individual farmers set up many small, inefficient distilleries. Comorans also produce handicrafts for export. Other industries are small and geared to internal markets: sawmills, printing, carpentry, and the production of shoes, plastics, yogurt, handicrafts (such as the jewelry exchanged as part of the grand mariage), and small fishing boats. Several factors provide major obstacles to the growth of industry: the islands' geographically isolated position, their distance from each other, a scarcity of raw materials and skilled labor, and the high cost of electricity (energy is produced by hydropower, imported petroleum, and wood products) and transportation. Value added in industry 1982slowly declined throughout the s.
Location: Southern Africa, group of islands in the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique

Geographic coordinates: 12 10 S, 44 15 E

Map references: Africa

Area:
total: 2,170 sq km
land: 2,170 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 340 km

Maritime claims:
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: tropical marine; rainy season (November to May)

Terrain: volcanic islands, interiors vary from steep mountains to low hills

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Le Kartala 2,360 m

Natural resources: NEGL

Land use:
arable land: 35%
permanent crops: 10%
permanent pastures: 7%
forests and woodland: 18%
other: 30% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: cyclones possible during rainy season (December to April); Le Kartala on Grand Comore is an active volcano

Environment - current issues: soil degradation and erosion results from crop cultivation on slopes without proper terracing; deforestation

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

Geography - note: important location at northern end of Mozambique Channel

March in1992, with two of the government's Udzima ministers having broken away to form a new party and conflict among the remaining Udzima ministers growing, Djohar headed off the complete collapse of his government by convening a multiparty constitutional convention. He scheduled a referendum on the new document in May, with general elections in June and balloting for local offices in July. After one postponement, the referendum was held on June 7. The Constitution of 1992 passed with about 74 percent of the vote, despite intensive campaigning against it by the FD and Udzima, which by this point opposed President Djohar. Among the new document's elements were articles calling for a bicameral legislature and a limit on presidential tenure to two five-year terms.

The legislative elections, postponed several times, finally were held on November 22 and 29, 1992. They were preceded in late September by an attempted coup by junior army officers, allegedly with the support of opposition politicians. Possible motives for the coup were an unpopular restructuring program mandated by the World Bank, which entailed sharp reductions in the number of civil servants, and President Djohar's ambiguous threat on September that his main opponents would "not be around for the elections." Djohar used the coup attempt as an opportunity to jail six military men and six opposition leaders "under conditions of extreme illegality," according to the Comoros Association of Human Rights (Association Comorienne des Droits Humains--ACDH).

Although a trio of French public officials sent to observe the balloting judged the election generally democratic, President Djohar's most prominent and determined opponents spent the voting days either in hiding or in jail. Two of the most important of the republic's twenty-four political parties, Udzima and the UNDC, boycotted the election. Given the president's own lack of party support, he spent most of 1993
cobbling together one government after another; at one point, in late spring, he formed two governments in the space of three weeks.

The events of a single day in July 1993 perhaps summed up the near-term prospects of politics in Comoros. On July 23, heeding demands that he call legislative elections (he had dissolved parliament on June 18 because of its inability to agree to a candidate for prime minister and because of the lack of a government majority) or else face the prospect of "other forms of action" by the opposition, Djohar scheduled voting for late October. That same day, his government arrested two opposition leaders for public criticism of the president.

The scheduled elections were again postponed--for the fourth time--until December 1993. On November 17, 1993, Djohar created a new National Electoral Commission, said to be appropriately representative of the various political parties. Meanwhile Djohar had established a new progovernment party, the Rally for Democracy and Renewal (Rassemblement pour la Démocratie et le Renew--RDR). In the first round of elections on December, which featured twenty-four parties with 214 candidates for fortytwo seats, various voting irregularities occurred, including the failure to issue voting cards to some 30 percent of eligible voters. The government announced that Djohar's party had won twenty-one seats with three seats remaining to be contested. Most opposition parties stated that they would not sit in the assembly and also refused to participate in the postponed second stage elections, which were supervised by the Ministry of Interior and the gendarmerie after the National Electoral Commission
MBABA Father, father's brother or father's sister
MDZADZE (MAMA) Mother, mother's sister
KOKO Grandmother
MBAE Grandfather
MZEE An elder
MDJOMBA Uncle (maternal)
MWANA Child, son, daughter, paternal nephew or niece
MWANAMWANMSHE Maternal nephew or niece
MDJUHU Grandchild
YILEMBWE Son or daughter of greatgrandchild
YITSANA Greatgrandchild
KAFE Coffee
CAYI Tea
UBU Drink made out of boiled rice
MAELE Cooked rice
NYAMA Meat
NDROVI Green banana
FURIAPA Breadfruit
NAZI Ripe coconuts
SHINGO Salt
SUKARI Sugar
NYUNGU Cooking pot
SHANU Plate
SUTRU Spoon
NDEHELIO, DJAWU, EWA Yes
TSIDJAU No
NDO ? Who ?
NDAHU ? Where ?
NDI ? When ?
HINDRI ? What ?
YA NDO ? Whose ?
DJE ? How ?
YE MANA HINDRI ? Why ?
TRASI Morning
MTSANA Midday
DJIO Afternoon
SAHUSAA Evening
MASIHU Night
ASUBWIHI Dawn
NDJEMA Good
TSI NDJEMA Not good
MBI Bad
HAPVASA Now
HALAFU After
DAIMA Usually

GREETINGS/SALUTATIONS


GREETING RESPONSE
KWEZI
Greetings (to elders) MPVONA
Be well
BARIZA ?
How are you ? NDJEMA
I am fine
NAMBARIZA ?
How are you (plural) ? NDJEMA
We are fine
BARIZA ASUBUHI (BARIZA TRASI) ?
How are you this morning ? NDJEMA
I am (we are) fine
YEMSHELEWA DJE ?
How did you wake up ? RISHELEWA NDRO
We woke up fine
BARIZA MTSANA ?
How is your midday ? NDJEMA/SALAMA
Fine/peace
BARIZA LEO ?
How are you today ? NDJEMA/SALAMA
Fine/peace
YE HUFANYIHA DJE ?
How are you (how do you feel) ?
YE MFANYIHA DJE ? TSIFANYIHA NDRO
I am fine (am getting better)

HODI
Permission to come KARIBU
Welcome
TSIHUFERESHEYA
Congratulations
TSIMFERESHEANI (plural) MARAHABA/SALAMA
Thank you/peace

RIDJA HOUZADENI (RIDJOUZADENI)
We come to share your well being (mariage, birth, arrival of relative, etc..)
WAHATRU SONTSI MARAHABA
The well being is for all of us, thank you
(meaning, we hope the same thing happen to you )
RIHWEREA YE MARUVU
We brought you nothing (we did not bring you anything) [visiting one who lost a relative)
RIMWEREANI YE MARUVU (plural) ALHAMDULILAHI
Praise to God


RIDJA NOMHONO WATRANGA
We send you our condeleance (we share your lost) NDIZO MGU YANDZAO
God does what He wishes
LALA UNONO
Good bye
NAMLALE HAUNONO (plural) MARAHABA/AHSANTA
Thank you

TSIUHISA MGU AMANA
I leave you to God (May god protect you)/ good bye
TSIMHISANI MGU AMANA (plural) AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you

MGU NAHONDOE
Come back ; May God brings you back (to the traveller)
MGU NAMONDOENI (plural) AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you


MSAFARA MWEMA
Good travel AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you


HUMAN BODY
SINGULAR PLURAL MEANING
HITSWA ZITSWA HEAD
HANYOA HANYOA MOUTH
ULIME NDIME TONGUE
DINYO MALINYO-MADINYO TOOTH
DOMO MALOMO LIP
DZITSO MATSO EYE
SHISHIO MASHISHIO EAR
NYILE NYILE HAIR
NDEVU NDEVU BEARD
MBUA MBUA NOSE
UKOPE NKOPVE EYELASH
UDAZI NDAZI EYEBROW
MHONO MIHONO ARM/HAND
DJANDZA MADJANDZA PALM
SHAYA ZAYA FINGER
FUU MAFUU NAIL
FUZI MAFUZI SHOULDER
NGOZI NGOZI SKIN
TRUMBO MARUMBO INTESTINE
BELE MABELE BREAST
IFUBA ZIFUBA CHEST
MBAFU MBAFU RIBS
PADJA MAPVADJA THIGH
MDU MINDU LEG
GUNGUNO MAGOUNGOUNO KNEE
TRAKO MATRAKO BUTTOCK
KAPWA MAHAPWA ARMPIT
NTSINGO NTSINGO HEEL

COLORS


NDJEWU White
NDZIDU Black
NYIKUNDU Red
BILE Blue
DZINDZANU Yellow
MANIMAYITSI Green



Media
As recently as the early 1980s Comoros had no national media. State-run Radio Comoros, transmitting from Njazidja, was not strong enough to send clear signals to the republic's other two islands. In 1984 France agreed to provide Radio Comoros with funding for an FM (frequency modulation) transmitter strong enough to broadcast to all three islands, and in 1985 made a commitment to fund a national newspaper after a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) study revealed that Comoros was the only UN member lacking print and electronic media. A state-owned newspaper, Al Watwany, began operations in July 1985, first as a monthly and soon afterward as a weekly. An independent weekly, L'Archipel, began publishing in 1988. A news agency, Agence Comores Presse, is now based in Moroni, and France has provided funds for establishing a national television service. In 1989 Comoros had an estimated 61,000 radios and 200 television sets.

In addition to national broadcasts on FM in Comoran Swahili and French, Radio Comoros in 1993 broadcast internationally on the shortwave band in Swahili, Arabic, and French. An independent commercial FM radio station, Radio Tropique FM, began broadcasting in 1991, although it and its director, political activist Ali Bakar Cassim, have both been the object of government ire over the station's readiness to criticize the Djohar regime.

During the independent media's brief career, its representatives occasionally have been rounded up along with other critics of the government during the republic's recurrent bouts of political crisis. However, outlets such as Radio Tropique FM and L'Archipel, which is noted for its satirical column, "Winking Eye," continue to provide independent political commentary.

Most of the tim the “kh†could be replaced by “hâ€; example “kheri = goodness†could become “heriâ€.

Some words with complex or specific articulation
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ pre-nasal articulation
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ - m in front of bilabial (p, b, pv, pb ), the m is articulated together with the word combined
with and use the vowel as if it was a normal combined word:
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ

mbuzi = goat mpundra = ane
mpbua = nose mpvenye = storms
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ - n in front of other words
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ

ndevu = bird nvua = rain آ آ آ
Nvuwu = strength ntondoo = a piece (a loaf)
nasal articulation
- m is used in front of consonnant and there is some kind of holding the m [mu] before finishing the word. In this case the m is used with all consonants and sound the same way except in front of w and y which are considered as semi-vowels.

Mdzadze = mother mda = cultivated field
mtsundji = a water conainer Mfu = corpse
N.B :. In front of bilabials (p, b, pv, pb ), the nasal m can be heard clearly and you can make a real difference between it and the pre-nasal.

Mbaba = father mpaka = limit (border line)
VOWELS
A Pronounced as in Alaska with all consonants and no matter which vowel follows it. Combined with i and e, you can hear some kind of sound close to the "y" in york.
For example:

Faida (benefit) آ is read fayida;
Elea (serving the food) آ is read eleya.
آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ آ When combined with u and o, you can hear some kind of sound close to the "w" in watt.
For example:

Fua (to wash cloth) is read fuwa;
toa (get something out) is read towa.

I Pronounced as in Italy is read the same way if it follows a consonant :

Hiri (chair), fikira (idea).
When beginning a word or when following another vowel, it is read with "y" sound;
آ For example:

itranda (bed) is read yitranda;
mwiano (border line or limit) is read mwiyano.

U Pronounced as in Zulu is read as the "ou" in you : puhu = rat.
When beginning a word or if it is preceded by another vowel, the u is pronounced with a weak sound of w.
For example:

upepo (wupepo) = wind;
hufua (hufuwa) = to do the laundry.

E Pronounced as in Egg آ
O Pronounced as in Orange

Mwali (Mohéli)
Dhows (Arab sail boats) are built on the beach at Fomboni on the smallest of the main islands. There is a fine waterfall at Miringoni. Giant turtles may be seen at Niumashuwa Bay.

Nzwani (Anjouan)
This island is notable for its waterfalls and abundant vegetation. The main town of Mutsamudu is built in Swahili-Shirazi style, complete with 17th-century houses with carved doors, twisting alleyways, mosques and a citadel. The ancient capital of Domoni is also worth a visit. The best beaches are in the Bimbini area. There are perfume distilleries at Bambao.

Mahore (Mayotte)
This French-administered island is surrounded by a coral reef and has good beaches and excellent scuba-diving facilities. Tourists may explore the lagoon (claimed to be the largest in the world) by dugout canoe. The town of Dzaoudzi contains some old fortifications worthy of a visit. Pamanzi is a forested islet 5km (3 miles) offshore, fragrant with a wealth of vegetation. At Sulu, a waterfall plunges straight into the sea. There are the remains of an old mosque at Tsingoni. Elsewhere, there are 19th-century sugar refineries. For further information, see the
ndustry and Infrastructure
Industrial activities are responsible for only a tiny portion of Comoran economic activity--about 5 percent of GDP in 1994. Principal industries are those that involve processing cash crops for export: preparing vanilla and distilling ylang-ylang into perfume essence. These activities were once controlled almost entirely by French companies, but as they closed unprofitable plantations, individual farmers set up many small, inefficient distilleries. Comorans also produce handicrafts for export. Other industries are small and geared to internal markets: sawmills, printing, carpentry, and the production of shoes, plastics, yogurt, handicrafts (such as the jewelry exchanged as part of the grand mariage), and small fishing boats. Several factors provide major obstacles to the growth of industry: the islands' geographically isolated position, their distance from each other, a scarcity of raw materials and skilled labor, and the high cost of electricity (energy is produced by hydropower, imported petroleum, and wood products) and transportation. Value added in industry slowly declined throughout the 1980s.

Perhaps the primary outcome of South African penetration of the Comoran economy during the Abdallah regime was the development of tourism. Although South African investors built or renovated several hotels during the 1980s (with assistance from the South African and Comoran governments), only one resort, the 182-room Galawa Beach on Njazidja, was operating by late 1992. About 100 other hotel rooms were available on the islands. Political instability, a declining South African interest in the islands as the apartheid regime was disassembled and other tropical tourism venues became more welcoming, and the need to import most construction materials and consumable supplies inhibited the growth of tourism, despite the islands' physical beauty. Nonetheless, in large part thanks to Galawa Beach, which had been closed during 1990, tourism increased from 7,627 visitors in 1990 to 16,942 in 1991. Most of these tourists were Europeans, primarily French.

NGASI SAA NGA ? What time is it ?
NGASI SAA KUME NA MBILI ZA TRASI It is 6:00 AM (litt: Twelve in the morning)
NGASI SAA HANDA ZA TRASI It is 7:00 AM (litt: one in the morning)
NGASI SAA PVILI ZA TRASI It is 8:00 AM (litt: two in the morning)
NGASI SAA RARU ZA TRASI It is 9:00 AM (litt: three in the morning)
NGASI SAA NNE ZA TRASI It is 10:00 AM (litt: four in the morning)
NGASI SAA TSANU ZA TRASI It is 11:00 AM (litt: five in the morning)
NGASI SAA SITA ZA MTSANA It is 12:00 PM (litt: six in midday)
NGASI SAA FUKARI ZA DJIO It is 1:00 PM (litt: seven in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA NANE ZA DJIO It is 2:00 PM (litt: eight in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA SHENDA ZA DJIO It is 3:00 PM (litt: nine in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA KUME ZA DJIO It is 4:00 PM (litt: ten in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA KUME NA MWEDJA ZA DJIO It is 5:00 PM (litt: eleven in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA KUME NA MBILI ZA DJIO It is 6:00 PM (litt: twelve in the afternoon)
NGASI SAA HANDA ZA MASIHU It is 7:00 PM (litt: one in the night )
NGASI SAA PVILI ZA MASIHU It is 8:00 PM (litt: two in the night )

Division of the time


8:05 SAA PVILI NA DAKIKA NTSANU
9:20 SAA RARU NA DAKIKA ISHIRINI
12:00 SAA SITA KAMILI
12:15 SAA SITA WA ROBO / SAA SITA NA DAKIKA KUME NA NTSANU
12:30 SAA SITA WA NUSU / SAA SITA NA DAKIKA MENGO MIRARU
12:45 SAA FUKARE YAPVUNGUHA ROBO / SAA SITA NA DAKIKA MENGO MINE NA NTSANU

DAYS OF THE WEEK

MFOMONTSI Saturday (litt : first day fo the week)
MFUMPVILI Sunday (litt : second day fo the week)
MFUMRARU Monday (litt :third day fo the week)
MFUMNE Tuesday (litt : fourth day fo the week)
MFUMTSANU Wednesday (litt : fifth day fo the week)
YAHOWA Thursday
DJUMWA Friday

MONTHS OF THE YEAR

Generally, the inhabitant of Ngazidja utilisent the lunarcalender based one the date that the Prophet Muhammad (may peace of God be upon Him) moved from Mecca to Medine. The christian calender is utilised by the administration and schools.


JANVIE/
MWEZI WA HANDA WAKI NASWARA JANUARY
First christian month
FEVRIE/
MWEZI WA PVILI WAKI NASWARA Février
Second christian month
MARS
MWEZI WA RARU WAKI NASWARA Mars
Third christian month
AVRIL
MWEZI WA NNE WAKI NASWARA Avril
Fourth christian month
ME
MWEZI WA TSANU WAKI NASWARA Mai
Fifth christian month
JUEN
MWEZI WA SITA WAKI NASWARA Juin
Sixth christian month
JULIET
MWEZI WA SABA WAKI NASWARA Juillet
Seventh christian month
UTU
MWEZI WA NANE WAKI NASWARA Août
eighth christian month
SEPTAMBR
MWEZI WA SHENDA WAKI NASWARA Septembre
nineth christian month
OCTOBR
MWEZI WA KUME WAKI NASWARA Octobre
Tenth christian month
NOVAMBR
MWEZI WA KUME NA MWEDJA WAKI NASWARA Novembre
Eleventh christian month
DESAMBR
MWEZI WA KUME NA MWEDJA WAKI NASWARA Decembre
Twelfth christian month

Telling the date

Some types of questions and answers:


QUESTIONS REPONSES
YE NGASI TAREHI HINDRI ?
What isthe date today? LEO MWIZI NNE YA JULIET
Today is 4rd juillet.
YE LEO MWEZI NGAPVI YA SHIZUNKU ?
What is the christian date of today ? LEO MWIZI NDRARU YA JULIET
Today is 3rd juillet.
YE LEO TAREHI NGAPVI YASHI ARABU (YASHI ISILAMU) ?
What is the moslem date of today? LEO MWIZI NTSANU YA SHAWAL
Today is the 5th of shawal
YE HUZALWA MWAHA HINDRI ?
What is your year of birth? TSIZALWA (1967) WO MWAHA SHIHWI NA MADJANA SHENDA NA MENGO MIRANDARU NA MFUKARE = I was born in 1967.
DIRECTIONS


MASHRIKI EAST
MAGHRIBI WEST
HASIHAZINI NORTH
KUSINI SOUTH

CELESTIAL BODIES

DJUA SUN
MWEZI / MEZI LUNE/MONTH/MONTHS
YIPVANDE SHANTSI / ZIPVANDE ZANTSI PLANET / PLANETS
NYORA STAR/ STARS
DUNIA EARTH
ULEMENGU THE UNIVERSE


Ngazidja (Grande Comore)
The capital Moroni is a charming, peaceful town containing a few broad squares and modern government buildings, as well as old, narrow, winding streets and a market place. There are numerous fine mosques including the Vendredi Mosque, from the top of which there is an attractive view.
The more energetic may climb to the top of Mount Karthala and then descend into the crater of this active volcano. The crater is claimed to be the largest still active anywhere in the world. It is usual to make one overnight stop at the shelter provided. The Karthala volcano erupted in 2003 and it may be worth checking the situation between traveling to this part of the island.
Itsandra, a fishing village 6km (4 miles) from Moroni, has a fine beach and there are opportunities to see dances performed by the local men. The town was once the ancient capital of the island, complete with royal tombs and a fortress.
There are hot sulphur springs at Lac Salé and a 14th-century village at Iconi. Mitsamiouli, a town in the north of the island, is known both for its good diving facilities and for having the best Comoran dancers. There are many bats and spiders on the island, the former often appearing in broad daylight.

NUMBERS AND ARITHMETICS

CARDINAL NUMBERS

HATA/ZERO 0
MONTSI 1
MBILI 2
NDRARU 3
NNE 4
TSANU 5
SITA/NDRADARU 6
SABA/MFUKARE 7
NANE 8
SHENDA 9
KUME 10
KUME NA MWEDJA 11
KUME NA MBILI 12
KUME NA NDRARU 13
KUME NA NNE 14
KUME NA NSTANU 15
KUME NA SITA 16
KUME NA MFUKARE 17
KUME NA NANE 18
KUME NA SHENDA 19
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) 20
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA MWEDJA 21
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA MBILI 22
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA NDRARU 23
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA NNE 24
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA NTSANU 25
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA SITA (NDRADARU) 26
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA MFUKARE 27
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA NANE 28
YISHIRINI (MENGOMILI) NA SHENDA 29
MENGO MIRARU 30

MENGO MIRARU NA MWEDJA 31
MENGO MIRARU NA MBILI 32
MENGO MIRARU NA NDRARU 33
MENGO MIRARU NA NNE 34
MENGO MIRARU NA TSANU 35
MENGO MIRARU NA SITA/NDRADARU 36
MENGO MIRARU NA SABA/MFUKARE 37
MENGO MIRARU NA NANE 38
MENGO MIRARU NA SHENDA 39
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) 40
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA MWEDJA 41
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA MBILI 42
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA NDRARU 43
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA NNE 44
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA TSANU 45
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA SITA/NDRADARU 46
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA SABA/MFUKARE 47
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA NANE 48
MENGO MINE (ARBAINI) NA SHENDA 49
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) 50
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA MWEDJA 51
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA MBILI 52
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA NDRARU 53
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA NNE 54
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA TSANU 55
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA SITA/NDRADARU 56
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA SABA/MFUKARE 57
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA NANE 58
MENGO MITSANU (KHAMSINI) NA SHENDA 59
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) 60
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA MWEDJA 61
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA MBILI 62
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA NDRARU 63
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA NNE 64
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA TSANU 65
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA SITA/NDRADARU 66
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA SABA/MFUKARE 67
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA NANE 68
MENGO MIRANDARU (SITINI) NA SHENDA 69
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) 70
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA MWEDJA 71
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA MBILI 72
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA NDRARU 73
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA NNE 74
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA TSANU 75
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA SITA/NDRADARU 76
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA SABA/MFUKARE 77
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA NANE 78
MENGO MFUKARE (SAB'INI) NA SHENDA 79
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) 80
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA MWEDJA 81
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA MBILI 82
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA NDRARU 83
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA NNE 84
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA TSANU 85
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA SITA/NDRADARU 86
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA SABA/MFUKARE 87
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA NANE 88
MENGO MINANE (THAMANINI) NA SHENDA 89
MENGO SHENDA 90
MENGO SHENDA NA MWEDJA 91
MENGO SHENDA NA MBILI 92
MENGO SHENDA NA NDRARU 93
MENGO SHENDA NA NNE 94
MENGO SHENDA NA TSANU 95
MENGO SHENDA NA SITA/NDRADARU 96
MENGO SHENDA NA SABA/MFUKARE 97
MENGO SHENDA NA NANE 98
MENGO SHENDA NA SHENDA 99
DJANA(MIA) 100
DJANA(MIA) NA MWEDJA 101
DJANA(MIA) NA MBILI 102
DJANA(MIA) NA NDRARU 103
DJANA(MIA) NA NNE 104
DJANA(MIA) NA TSANU 105
DJANA(MIA) NA SITA/NDRADARU 106
DJANA(MIA) NA SABA/MFUKARE 107
DJANA(MIA) NA NANE 108
DJANA(MIA) NA SHENDA 109
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME 110
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA MWEDJA 111
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA MBILI 112
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA NDRARU 113
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA NNE 114
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA TSANU 115
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA SITA/NDRADARU 116
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA SABA/MFUKARE 117
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA NANE 118
DJANA (MIA) NA KUME NA SHENDA 119
DJANA (MIA) WA ISHIRINI 120
DJANA (MIA) WA ISHIRINI NA MWEDJA 121
DJANA (MIA) WA ISHIRINI NA MBILI 122
DJANA (MIA) WA ISHIRINI NA NANE 128
DJANA (MIA) WA ISHIRINI NA SHENDA 129
DJANA (MIA) WA THALATHINI (MENGOMIRARU) 130
DJANA (MIA) NA THALATHINI (MENGOMIRARU) NA MWEDJA 131
DJANA (MIA) NA THALATHINI (MENGOMIRARU) NA SHENDA 139
DJANA (MIA) NA ARBAINI (MENGOMINE) 140
DJANA (MIA) WA ARBAINI (MENGOMINE) NA SHENDA 149
DJANA (MIA) WA KHAMSINI (MENGOMITSANU) 150
DJANA (MIA) WA SITINI (MENGOMIRANDARU) 160
DJANA (MIA) WA SAB'INI () 170
DJANA (MIA) WA THAMANINI() 180
DJANA (MIA) WA TIS'INI() 190
MADJANA MAILI / MIA MBILI 200
MADJANA MARARU / MIA NDRARU 300
MADJANA MANE /MIA NE 400
MADJANA MATSANU/MIA NTSANU 500
MADJANA MARANDARU/MIA NDRADARU 600
MADJANA MANANE/MIA NANE 700
MADJANA SHENDA/MIA SHENDA 800
SHIHWI/ALFU 900
SHIHWI (ALFU) NA MWEDJA 1 001
SHIHWI (ALFU) NA KUME 1 010
SHIHWI (ALFU) NA ISHIRINI NA SHENDA 1 029
ZIHWI ZILI /ALFU MBILI 2 000
ZIHWI ZIRARU/ALFU NDRARU 3 000
ZIHWI ZINE/ALFU NE 4 000
ZIHWI ZITSANU / ALFU NTSANU 5 000
ZIHWI SITA / ALFU SITA 6 000
ZIHWI MFUKARE / ALFU MFUKARE 7 000
ZIHUI ZINANE / ALFU NANE 8 000
ZIHWI SHENDA / ALFU SHENDA 9 000
ZIHWI SHENDA NA MADJANA SHENDA NA MENGO SHENDA NA SHENDA / ALFU SHENDA NA MIA SHENDA NA TIS'INI NA SHENDA
9 999

ZIHWI KUME 10 000
ZIHWI ISHIRINI / LAKI 20 000
ZIHWI MENGO MIRARU / LAKI WANUSU 30 000
ZIHWI MENGO MINE / ZIHWI ARBAINI / LAKI MBILI 40 000
ZIHWI MENGO MITSANU / ZIHWI HAMSINI 50 000
ZIHWI MENGO MIRANDARU / ZIHWI SITINI 60 000
ZIHWI MENGO MFUKARE / ZIHWI SAB'INI 70 000
ZIHWI MENGO MINANE / ZIHWI THAMANINI 80 000
ZIHWI MENGO SHENDA / ZIHWI TISINI 90 000
ZIHWI DJANA 100 000
ZIHWI MADJANA MAILI 200 000
ZIHWI MADJANA MATSANU 500 000
ZIHWI MADJANA SHENDA 900 000
MILIONI / ZIHWI MADJANA MAYILI 1 000 000

FRACTIONS, DECIMALS AND PERCENTAGES
FRACTIONS

NUSU HALF (1/2)
ROBOO QUARTER (1/4)
THUMUNI ONE EIGTH (1/8)
SEHEMU YA RARU ONE THIRD (1/3)
SEHEMU YA SITA ONE SISTH (1/6)

DECIMALS:

2.01MBILI NUKTWA HATAT NDZIMA
30.60 = THALATHINI NUKTWA SITINI

PERCENTAGES

NDZIMA HARUMWA DJANA = 1 %
KUME HARUMWA DJANA = 10 %
ISHIRINI HARUMWA DJANA = 20 %
MENGO MITSANU NA NTSANU HARUMWA DJANA = 55 %
MENGO SHENDA NA SHENDA HARUMWA DJANA = 99 %
DJANA HARUMWA DJANA = 100 %



Perhaps the primary outcome of South African penetration of the Comoran economy during the Abdallah regime was the development of tourism. Although South African investors built or renovated several hotels during the 1980s (with assistance from the South African and Comoran governments), only one resort, the 182-room Galawa Beach on Njazidja, was operating by late 1992. About 100 other hotel rooms were available on the islands. Political instability, a declining South African interest in the islands as the apartheid regime was disassembled and other tropical tourism venues became more welcoming, and the need to import most construction materials and consumable supplies inhibited the growth of tourism, despite the islands' physical beauty. Nonetheless, in large part thanks to Galawa Beach, which had been closed during 1990, tourism increased from 7,627 visitors in 1990 to 16,942 in 1991. Most of these tourists were Europeans, primarily French.
Political Dynamics
In the immediate aftermath of the Abdallah assassination and subsequent events of late1989
, A limited amount of political healing occurred in Comoros. Denard and his fellow mercenaries were expelled, although the fate of their vast financial holdings in the islands remained unclear. With the South African government temporarily out of the picture, French officials now oversaw the police and the army, and the remnants of the GP were under the watchful eye of French paratroopers. Among those released in a general amnesty for political prisoners was Mustapha Said Cheikh, leader of the opposition FD who had been imprisoned for four years for alleged involvement in the unsuccessful March 1985 coup. He was quickly proposed as a possible presidential candidate. Also suggested was Mohamed Taki, one-time National Assembly president whose power had been diminished by Abdallah's constitutional maneuvers; he had subsequently gone into exile in France, where his entourage reportedly included two mercenary bodyguards. Also announcing for the presidency was Said Ali Kemal, who had been living in quiet exile in Paris since being exposed as the sponsor of Australian mercenaries who had plotted to overthrow the Abdallah government in. In 1983
late December1989
, Members of the formerly banned opposition, along with President Djohar, decided to form a provisional "national unity" government and to hold a multiparty presidential election in1990
.

In an awkward but somehow effective campaign to keep himself in power, Djohar spent much of the early 1990s playing a political shell game with the opposition. He moved election dates backward and forward and sanctioned irregularities, giving his opponents little choice but to condemn the balloting as invalid. Djohar began this strategy within weeks of his installation as interim president, rescheduling the presidential election set for January 14, 1990 to February 18. Djohar's decision was met with demonstrations and violence that marked an abrupt end to the post-Abdallah period of national unity, hardly three weeks after Bob Denard had been expelled from the country. The February 18 balloting broke down shortly after the polls opened. The government was accused of widespread fraud, including issuing multiple voting cards to some voters and opening the polls to voters who looked well below the minimum age of eighteen.

Elections were rescheduled for March4, 1990
with a runoff on Marche Djohar was the official victor, claiming; percent of the vote55 over runner-up Mohamed Taki's 45
percent. Djohar had run under the banner of the Union Comorienne pour le Progrès (Udzima--Comoro Union for Progress), basically a recycled version of Ahmed Abdallah's old UCP, whereas Taki had represented the National Union for Comorian Democracy (Union Nationale pour la Démocratie Comorien -- UNDC). As would be the case in other Comorian elections in the 1990s, the sole major issue appeared to be the character and ability of the incumbent president rather than any matter of public policy or ideology. The Supreme Court certified the results of the election, despite strong evidence that the Ministry of Interior had altered the vote count, especially in the first round, to favor Djohar at Taki's expense
Position--and the subministry was eliminated--hardly a week later, in one of President Djohar's routine ministerial reshufflings. Djohar made another nod to women in February 1992, when he invited representatives of an interest group, the Women's Federation, to take part in discussions on what would become the constitution of1992
. Women only apparently organized and participated in a large demonstration critical of French support of the Djohar regime in October 1992, following government suppression of a coup attempt. several others. Another female official, Situ Mohamed, was named to head the second-tier Ministry of Population and Women's Affairs, in August1991
. She lost her


Pronounced as in Alaska
A Pronounced as in Alaska
B Is bilabial except in loaned words
C Pronounced as in Church
D Pronounced as in Darwin
E Pronounced as in Egg
F Pronounced as in Fault
G Pronounced as in Go
H Pronounced as in Hire
I Pronounced as in India
J Pronounced as in James
K Pronounced as in Kentucky
L Pronounced as in Land
M Pronounced as in Miami
N Pronounced as in Nebraska
O Pronounced as in Orange
P Pronounced as in People
R Pronounced as in Ranch
S Pronounced as in South
T Pronounced as in Teacher
U Pronounced as in Rule
V Pronounced as in Voice
W Pronounced as in West
Y Pronounced as in York
Z Pronounced as in Zanzibar
As you may have noticed, there is no Q & X in Shingazidja.
Moreover, C sound always as CH in church and never as an S.

words with combined consonants
Some alphabetical sounds are the result of combined consonants. These combined consonants are used in borrowed words especially arabic ones


Dj As in Jungle "example, djirani = the neighbor"
Sh As in Show "example, shahula = meal"
Pv As in "example, "
Ny As in spanish maأ±aأ±a "example, nyama = meat "
Th As in think "example, thamani = price or value "
Dh As in The "example, dhahabu = or"
Kh* "example, khatwari = danger"
Gh "example, lugha = language"
Tw As in twin "example, twawuni = famine"
Sw As in swift "example, swala = prayer "
Dhw "example, dhwamana = the supervisor "
Mw "example, mwaha = a year "
Tr As in tree "example, trango = melon "
Dr As in dream "example, ndravu = branch "
Ts "example, tsumu = fasting "
Pw "example, pwapwai = papaya fruit "
Bw "example, bwibwii = woman voile "
Ng Pronunced as written "example, ngama = a hole

Public Health
After independence in 1975, the French withdrew their medical teams, leaving the three islands' already rudimentary health care system in a state of severe crisis. French assistance was eventually resumed, and other nations also contributed medical assistance to the young republic. Despite improvements in life expectancy and the infant mortality rate, Comoros in 1993 continued to face public health problems characteristic of developing countries.

Life expectancy at birth was estimated at fifty-six years in 1990, up from fifty-one years in 1980. The crude birthrate was forty-eight per 1,000 and the crude death rate, twelve per 1,000 according to 1989 statistics. All three of these figures were close to the averages for sub-Saharan Africa. The rate of infant mortality per 1,000 live births was eighty-nine in 1991, down from 113 in 1980. The 1990 average rate for sub-Saharan Africa was 107.

Malaria was ubiquitous in the islands, with 80 to 90 percent of the population said to be affected by the disease. Other prevalent maladies included tuberculosis, leprosy, and parasitic diseases. In 1989 about half of all children one year old or younger had been immunized against tuberculosis, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, and measles, a proportion roughly comparable to the rate of immunization among other states in subSaharan Africa. Per capita daily caloric intake in 1988 was 2,046, about average for sub-Saharan Africa but only a little better than 90 percent of daily requirements. Children were most often the victims of malnutrition. Their generally poor diets were deficient in protein in part because local custom discouraged the feeding of fish to children. The scarcity of safe drinking water--available to about one in three Comorans--made intestinal parasites a problem and compounded malnutrition, with children again being the main victims.

The World Bank estimated that in 1993 Comoros had one physician per 6,582 Comorans, a marked improvement over the ratio of one to 13,810 reported in 1983. Comparable data for subSaharan Africa as a whole were not available; however, it appeared that Comorans enjoyed a more favorable ratio than many of their neighbors in East Africa and the Indian Ocean.

Despite improvements in life expectancy, infant mortality, and the number of physicians, the overall quality of care remained poor. About 80 percent of the population lives within one hour's walk of a health facility, usually headed by a trained nurse, but paramedical staff are in short supply and many health facilities are in poor condition. Some international medical aid has been provided, mostly by France and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Although Comoros lacks homegrown narcotics, the islands are used as a transit site for drugs coming mainly from Madagascar. In view of international concern about drug trafficking, in 1993 France began providing technical expertise in this field to Comoros. In addition, the World Bank in a 1994 report pointed out the "high prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases and the low use of condoms" as a significant health threat with regard to the spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), which already affected the islands. However, in the period prior to 1990 and extending through 1992, the WHO reported that Comoros had a very low incidence of AIDS--a total of three cases with no case reported in 1992, or an overall case rate of 0.1 per 100,000 population.

Public Health
After independence in 1975, the French withdrew their medical teams, leaving the three islands' already rudimentary health care system in a state of severe crisis. French assistance was eventually resumed, and other nations also contributed medical assistance to the young republic. Despite improvements in life expectancy and the infant mortality rate, Comoros in 1993 continued to face public health problems characteristic of developing countries.

Life expectancy at birth was estimated at fifty-six years in 1990, up from fifty-one years in 1980. The crude birthrate was forty-eight per 1,000 and the crude death rate, twelve per 1,000 according to 1989 statistics. All three of these figures were close to the averages for sub-Saharan Africa. The rate of infant mortality per 1,000 live births was eighty-nine in 1991, down from 113 in 1980. The 1990 average rate for sub-Saharan Africa was 107.

Malaria was ubiquitous in the islands, with 80 to 90 percent of the population said to be affected by the disease. Other prevalent maladies included tuberculosis, leprosy, and parasitic diseases. In 1989 about half of all children one year old or younger had been immunized against tuberculosis, diphtheria, pertussis, tetanus, polio, and measles, a proportion roughly comparable to the rate of immunization among other states in subSaharan Africa. Per capita daily caloric intake in 1988 was 2,046, about average for sub-Saharan Africa but only a little better than 90 percent of daily requirements. Children were most often the victims of malnutrition. Their generally poor diets were deficient in protein in part because local custom discouraged the feeding of fish to children. The scarcity of safe drinking water--available to about one in three Comorans--made intestinal parasites a problem and compounded malnutrition, with children again being the main victims.

The World Bank estimated that in 1993 Comoros had one physician per 6,582 Comorans, a marked improvement over the ratio of one to 13,810 reported in 1983. Comparable data for subSaharan Africa as a whole were not available; however, it appeared that Comorans enjoyed a more favorable ratio than many of their neighbors in East Africa and the Indian Ocean.

Despite improvements in life expectancy, infant mortality, and the number of physicians, the overall quality of care remained poor. About 80 percent of the population lives within one hour's walk of a health facility, usually headed by a trained nurse, but paramedical staff are in short supply and many health facilities are in poor condition. Some international medical aid has been provided, mostly by France and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Although Comoros lacks homegrown narcotics, the islands are used as a transit site for drugs coming mainly from Madagascar. In view of international concern about drug trafficking, in 1993 France began providing technical expertise in this field to Comoros. In addition, the World Bank in a 1994 report pointed out the "high prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases and the low use of condoms" as a significant health threat with regard to the spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), which already affected the islands. However, in the period prior to 1990 and extending through 1992, the WHO reported that Comoros had a very low incidence of AIDS--a total of three cases with no case reported in 1992, or an overall case rate of 0.1 per 100,000 population.

Religion and Education
Islam and its institutions help to integrate Comoran society and provide an identification with a world beyond the islands' shores. As Sunni Muslims, the people follow religious observances conscientiously and strictly adhere to religious orthodoxy. During the period of colonization, the French did not attempt to supplant Islamic customs and practices and were careful to respect the precedents of Islamic law as interpreted by the Shafii school (one of the four major legal schools in Sunni Islam, named after Muhammad ibn Idris ash Shafii, it stresses reasoning by analogy). Hundreds of mosques dot the islands.

Practically all children attend Quranic school for two or three years, starting around age five; there they learn the rudiments of the Islamic faith and some classical Arabic. When rural children attend these schools, they sometimes move away from home and help the teacher work his land.

France established a system of primary and secondary schools based on the French model, which remains largely in place. Comoran law requires all children to complete eight years of schooling between the ages of seven and fifteen. The system provides six years of primary education for students ages six to twelve, followed by seven years of secondary school. In recent years, enrollment has expanded greatly, particularly at the primary level. About 20,750 pupils, or roughly 75 percent of primary-school-age children were enrolled in 1993, up from about 46 percent in the late 1970s. About 17 percent of the secondaryschool -age population was enrolled, up from an estimated 7 percent fifteen to twenty years earlier. Teacher-student ratios also improved, from 47:1 to 36:1 in the primary schools and from 26:1 to 25:1 in secondary schools. The increased attendance was all the more significant given the population's high percentage of school-age children. Improvement in educational facilities was funded in 1993 by loans from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and the African Development Bank. Despite the spread of education, adult literacy in 1993 has been estimated at no better than 50 percent.

Comoros has no university but post-secondary education, which in 1993 involved 400 students, is available in the form of teacher training, agricultural education training, health sciences, and business. Those desiring higher education must study abroad; a "brain drain" has resulted because few university graduates are willing to return to the islands. Teacher training and other specialized courses are available at the M'Vouni School for Higher Education, in operation since 1981 at a site near Moroni. Few Comoran teachers study overseas, but the republic often cannot give its teachers all the training they need. Some international aid has been provided, however, to further teacher training in the islands themselves. For example, in 1987 the IDA extended credits worth US$7.9 million to train 3,000 primary and 350 secondary school teachers. In 1986 the government began opening technology training centers offering a three-year diploma program at the upper secondary level. The Ministry of National Education and Professional Training is responsible for education policy.

As elsewhere in Comoran society, political instability has taken a toll on the education system. Routinely announced reductions in force among the civil service, often made in response to international pressure for fiscal reform, sometimes result in teacher strikes. When civil service cutbacks result in canceled classes or examinations, students have at times taken to the streets in protest. Students have also protested, even violently, against government underfunding or general mismanagement of the schools--the World Bank stated in 1994 that the quality of education resulted in high rates of repetition and dropouts such that the average student needed fourteen years to complete the six-year primary cycle.

Social Conventions
Religious customs associated with Islam should be respected. Although Comorans are tolerant towards other cultures (for instance, alcohol is not banned and is available in hotels and restaurants), they expect moderate behavior from non Muslim visitors, such as non consumption of alcohol in public places and modest dress in public.

International Travel:

Air
Airlines operating to the Comoros Islands include Air Austral, Air Madagascar, Air Tanzania Corporation, Sudan Airlines and Yemenia Yemen Airways. Air France operates regularly from Paris via Réunion.

Approximate flight times
To Moroni from London takes a minimum of 20 hours; this includes stopovers (usually in Paris and Réunion).

Main airports
Moroni International Prince Said Ibrahim (HAH), 25km (16 miles) north of the city. To/from the airport: Taxis are available to the town (travel time – 30 minutes). Taxis do not have meters but prices are fixed. Make sure you know the price before boarding the taxi. Facilities: Bars and light refreshments, left luggage and a post office are available for international flights. There are no money-changing facilities at the airport.

Departure tax
None.

Sea
There are irregular sailings from East Africa (Mombasa, Kenya), Madagascar, Mauritius, Réunion or Zanzibar to Moroni or Mutsamudu. These are mostly cargo ships which might carry passengers.

The following goods may be imported into the Comoros Islands by persons 18 years of age and over without incurring customs duty:
400 cigarettes or 100 cigaretts or 500g of tobacco; one bottle of alcoholic beverage; one bottle of perfume.

Prohibited items
Plants or soil, except on presentation of an import permit issued from the Comoro Islands' Agriculture Department, together with a phytosanitary certificate of the place of origin.

Internal Travel:

Air
Each island has an airfield and there are services between the islands in the region.

Sea
The islands are linked by regular ferry services. Travelers can hire motorboats, sailing craft and canoes in port villages and towns. A boat can be especially useful for Mwali (Mohéli) where the road system is rudimentary.

Road
Bush taxis (taxis-brousses), hired vehicles or private cars are the only forms of transport on the islands. Traffic drives on the right. All the islands have tarred roads. 4-wheel-drive vehicles are advisable for the outlying islands and in the interior, especially in the rainy season. Roads are narrow and domestic animals often roam free, so visitors should drive slowly. Share-taxis provide transport in and around towns. Car hire: Available on Ngazidja (Grande Comore). Documentation: An International Driving Permit is valid for up to three months.

SOCIETY AND CULTURE
Comoran society and culture reflect the influences of Islam and the traditions of East Africa. The former provides the basis for religion and law; the East African influence is evident in the language, a Swahili dialect, and in a number of pre-Islamic customs. Western, primarily French, influences are also prevalent, particularly in the modern educational sector, the civil service, and cultural affairs
SOME USUAL VOCABULARIES IN SHINGAZIDJA

EVERYDAY VOCABULARY


MBABA Father, father's brother or father's sister
MDZADZE (MAMA) Mother, mother's sister
KOKO Grandmother
MBAE Grandfather
MZEE An elder
MDJOMBA Uncle (maternal)
MWANA Child, son, daughter, paternal nephew or niece
MWANAMWANMSHE Maternal nephew or niece
MDJUHU Grandchild
YILEMBWE Son or daughter of greatgrandchild
YITSANA Greatgrandchild
KAFE Coffee
ChAYI Tea
UBU Drink made out of boiled rice
MAELE Cooked rice
NYAMA Meat
NDROVI Green banana
FURIAPA Breadfruit
NAZI Ripe coconuts
SHINGO Salt
SUKARI Sugar
NYUNGU Cooking pot
SHANU Plate
SUTRU Spoon
NDEHELIO, DJAWU, EWA Yes
TSIDJAU No
NDO ? Who ?
NDAHU ? Where ?
NDI ? When ?
HINDRI ? What ?
YA NDO ? Whose ?
DJE ? How ?
YE MANA HINDRI ? Why ?
TRASI Morning
MTSANA Midday
DJIO Afternoon
SAHUSAA Evening
MASIHU Night
ASUBWIHI Dawn
NDJEMA Good
TSI NDJEMA Not good
MBI Bad
HAPVASA Now
HALAFU After
DAIMA Usually

GREETINGS/SALUTATIONS


GREETING RESPONSE
KWEZI
Greetings (to elders) MPVONA
Be well
BARIZA ?
How are you ? NDJEMA
I am fine
NAMBARIZA ?
How are you (plural) ? NDJEMA
We are fine
BARIZA ASUBUHI (BARIZA TRASI) ?
How are you this morning ? NDJEMA
I am (we are) fine
YEMSHELEWA DJE ?
How did you wake up ? RISHELEWA NDRO
We woke up fine
BARIZA MTSANA ?
How is your midday ? NDJEMA/SALAMA
Fine/peace
BARIZA LEO ?
How are you today ? NDJEMA/SALAMA
Fine/peace
YE HUFANYIHA DJE ?
How are you (how do you feel) ?
YE MFANYIHA DJE ? TSIFANYIHA NDRO
I am fine (am getting better)

HODI
Permission to come KARIBU
Welcome
TSIHUFERESHEYA
Congratulations
TSIMFERESHEANI (plural) MARAHABA/SALAMA
Thank you/peace

RIDJA HOUZADENI (RIDJOUZADENI)
We come to share your well being (mariage, birth, arrival of relative, etc..)
WAHATRU SONTSI MARAHABA
The well being is for all of us, thank you
(meaning, we hope the same thing happen to you )
RIHWEREA YE MARUVU
We brought you nothing (we did not bring you anything) [visiting one who lost a relative)
RIMWEREANI YE MARUVU (plural) ALHAMDULILAHI
Praise to God


RIDJA NOMHONO WATRANGA
We send you our condeleance (we share your lost) NDIZO MGU YANDZAO
God does what He wishes
LALA UNONO
Good bye
NAMLALE HAUNONO (plural) MARAHABA/AHSANTA
Thank you

TSIUHISA MGU AMANA
I leave you to God (May god protect you)/ good bye
TSIMHISANI MGU AMANA (plural) AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you

MGU NAHONDOE
Come back ; May God brings you back (to the traveller)
MGU NAMONDOENI (plural) AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you


MSAFARA MWEMA
Good travel AHSANTA/MARAHABA
Thank you


HUMAN BODY
SINGULAR PLURAL MEANING
HITSWA ZITSWA HEAD
HANYOA HANYOA MOUTH
ULIME NDIME TONGUE
DINYO MALINYO-MADINYO TOOTH
DOMO MALOMO LIP
DZITSO MATSO EYE
SHISHIO MASHISHIO EAR
NYILE NYILE HAIR
NDEVU NDEVU BEARD
MBUA MBUA NOSE
UKOPE NKOPVE EYELASH
UDAZI NDAZI EYEBROW
MHONO MIHONO ARM/HAND
DJANDZA MADJANDZA PALM
SHAYA ZAYA FINGER
FUU MAFUU NAIL
FUZI MAFUZI SHOULDER
NGOZI NGOZI SKIN
TRUMBO MARUMBO INTESTINE
BELE MABELE BREAST
IFUBA ZIFUBA CHEST
MBAFU MBAFU RIBS
PADJA MAPVADJA THIGH
MDU MINDU LEG
GUNGUNO MAGOUNGOUNO KNEE
TRAKO MATRAKO BUTTOCK
KAPWA MAHAPWA ARMPIT
NTSINGO NTSINGO HEEL

COLORS


NDJEWU White
NDZIDU Black
NYIKUNDU Red
BILE Blue
DZINDZANU Yellow
MANIMAYITSI Green



Status of Women
Among men who can afford it, the preferred form of marriage appears to be polygyny with matrilocal residence. Although possible, the first marriage is formally initiated with the grand mariage when possible, subsequent unions involve much simpler ceremonies. The result is that a man will establish two or even more households and will alternate residence between them, a reflection, most likely, of the trading origins of the Shirazi elite who maintained wives at different trading posts. Said Mohamed Djohar, elected president in 1990, had two wives, one in Njazidja and the other in Nzwani, an arrangement said to have broadened his appeal to voters. For men, divorce is easy, although by custom a divorced wife retains the family home.

Islamic law recognizes only male ownership and inheritance of land. In Comoros, however, certain landholdings called magnahouli are controlled by women and inherited through the female line, apparently in observance of a surviving matriarchal African tradition.

Despite their lower economic status, women married to farmers or laborers often move about more freely than their counterparts among the social elite, managing market stands or working in the fields. On Mwali, where traditional Islamic values are less dominant, women generally are not as strictly secluded. Women constituted 40.4 percent of the work force in 1990, a figure slightly above average for sub-Saharan Africa.

Girls are somewhat less likely than boys to attend school in Comoros. The World Bank estimated in 1993 that 67 percent of girls were enrolled in primary schools, whereas 82 percent of boys were enrolled. In secondary school, 15 percent of eligible Comoran girls were in attendance, in comparison with about 19 percent of eligible boys.

Although the 1992 constitution recognizes their right to suffrage, as did the 1978 constitution, women otherwise play a limited role in politics in Comoros. By contrast, in Mahoré female merchants sparked the movement for continued association with France, and later, for continued separation from the Republic of the Comoros.

Comoros accepted international aid for family planning in 1983, but it was considered politically inexpedient to put any plans into effect. According to a 1993 estimate, there were 6.8 births per woman in Comoros. By contrast, the figure was 6.4 births per woman for the rest of sub-Saharan Africa.

In one of Comoran society's first acknowledgments of women as a discrete interest group, the Abdallah government organized a seminar, "Women, Family, and Development," in 1986. Despite participants' hopes that programs for family planning and female literacy would be announced, conference organizers stressed the role of women in agriculture and family life. Women fared slightly better under the Djohar regime. In February 1990, while still interim president, Djohar created a cabinet-level Ministry of Social and Women's Affairs, and appointed a woman, Ahlonkoba Aithnard, to head it. She lasted until a few weeks after Djohar's election to the presidency in March, when her ministry was reorganized out of existence, along with several others. Another female official, Situ Mohamed, was named to head the second-tier Ministry of Population and Women's Affairs, in August 1991. She lost her position--and the subministry was eliminated--hardly a week later, in one of President Djohar's routine ministerial reshufflings. Djohar made another nod to women in February 1992, when he invited representatives of an interest group, the Women's Federation, to take part in discussions on what would become the constitution of 1992. Women only apparently organized and participated in a large demonstration critical of French support of the Djohar regime in October 1992, following government suppression of a coup attempt.

The climate is tropical and very warm. Coastal areas are hot and very humid, interspaced with rains and seasonal cyclones (January to April). The upland areas are cooler, particularly at night, and have higher rainfall. The rainy season is from November to April.

Required clothing
Lightweight cottons and linens with waterproofing during the rainy season. Warmer garments and rainwear are needed for the mountains.

THE FEDERAL ISLAMIC REPUBLIC of the Comoros is an archipelago situated in the western Indian Ocean, about midway between the island of Madagascar and the coast of East Africa at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel. The archipelago has served in past centuries as a stepping stone between the African continent and Madagascar, as a southern outpost for Arab traders operating along the East African coast, and as a center of Islamic culture. The name "Comoros" is derived from the Arabic kamar or kumr, meaning "moon," although this name was first applied by Arab geographers to Madagascar. In the nineteenth century, Comoros was absorbed into the French overseas empire, but it unilaterally proclaimed independence from France on July 6, 1975.

Comoros has had a troubled and uncertain course as an independent state. Mahoré, or Mayotte, the easternmost of the archipelago's four main islands, including Njazidja (formerly Grande Comore), Mwali (formerly Mohéli), and Nzwani (formerly Anjouan), remains under French administration, a majority of its voters having chosen to remain tied to France in referendums held in 1974 and 1976. By the mid-1990s, the integration of Mahoré into Comoros remained an official objective of the Comoran government, but it had taken a back seat to more pressing concerns, such as developing a viable national economy. Meanwhile, the Mahorais were making the most of their close relationship with France. They accepted large amounts of developmental aid and took an intense interest in French political events. Although South Africa played a major role in the Comoran economy in the 1980s, by the early 1990s France was the island republic's foremost patron, providing economic aid, political guidance, and national security.

Comoros is densely populated and dedicates only limited amounts of land to food production. Thus, it depends heavily on imports of rice, vegetables, and meat. Its economy is based on the production of cash crops, principally ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, and cloves, all of which have experienced wild price swings in recent years, thus complicating economic planning and contributing to a burgeoning trade deficit. A growing dependence on foreign aid, often provided to meet day-to-day needs for food, funds, and government operations, further clouds economic prospects. Comoros suffers the ills of a developing nation in particularly severe form: food shortages and inadequate diets, poor health standards, a high rate of population growth, widespread illiteracy, and international indebtedness.

The country has endured political and natural catastrophes. Less than a month after independence, the government of the first Comoran president, Ahmed Abdallah, was overthrown; in 1978 foreign mercenaries carried out a second coup, overthrowing the radical regime of Ali Soilih and returning Abdallah to power. Indigenous riots in Madagascar in 1976 led to the repatriation of an estimated 17,000 Comorans. The eruption of the volcano, Kartala, on Njazidja in 1977 displaced some 2,000 people and possibly hastened the downfall of the Soilih regime. Cyclones in the 1980s, along with a violent coup that included the assassination of President Abdallah in 1989 and two weeks of rule by European mercenaries, rounded out the first fifteen years of Comoran independence.

In the early 1990s, the omnipresent mercenaries of the late 1970s and 1980s were gone, and the winding down of civil conflict in southern Africa, in combination with the end of the Cold War, had reduced the republic's value as a strategic chess piece. However, as in the 1970s and 1980s, the challenge to Comorans was to find a way off the treadmills of economic dependency and domestic political dysfunction.

Time and dates terminologies
SINGULAR PLURAL MEANING
SEGONDI SEGONDI SECOND / SECONDS
DAKIKA DAKIKA MINUTE / MINUTES
SAA SAA HOUR / HOURS
USIKU NTSIHU DAY / DAYS
MTSANA MITSANA DAYTIME / DAYTIMES
ASUBUHI ASUBUHI MORNING
MASIHU MASIHU NIGHT/ NIGHTS
DJIO MADJIO AFTERNOON / AFTERNOONS
MAHARIBI MAHARIBI SUNSET
ALFADJIRI ALFADJIRI DAWN
MFUMO MIFUMO WEEK / WEEKS
MWEZI MEZI MONTH / MONTHS
MWAHA MAHA YEAR / YEARS
KARNI KARNI CENTURY / CENTURIES
WAKATI NYAKATI SEASON
ASIHAZI NORTHERN WIND
KUSI SOUTHERN WIND
MBENI DRY SEASON
UPEPO UPEPO WIND
MGUGUMA MIGUGUMA STORM / STORMS
RAANDU RAANDU FIRE-STORMS
YIDJUNDU YIDJUNDU CYCLONE / CYCLONES
BINGU MAYINGU SKY/SKIES/CLOUD/CLOUDS
MVUA MVUA RAIN
LEO TODAY
DJANA YESTERDAY
JUZI DAY BEFORE YESTERDAY
MAUDU TOMORROW
USHAO DAY AFTER TOMORROW

Telling the time
The comorians have a particular way of telling the time. It begins at 7:00 AM and they call it "one in the morning" as it is the beginning of the morning.
The night begins at 7:00 PM which is considered as one in the evening.
In short, the night begins at 7:00 PM and end at 6:00 AM, then the day begins at 7:00 AM and end at 6:00 PM

Watersports
There is excellent diving in the archipelago. The Trou du Prophète in Misamiouli on Ngazidja, Niumashuwa Bay on Mwali and Pamanzi islet off Mahore are particularly fine. There are many excellent beaches on all the islands and Galawa Beach on Grande Comore has a diving school. Other good beaches include Bouni, Chomoni (near a sheltered bay), Galawa, Itsandra and the palm-fringed Planet Plage. Pirogue (canoe) races are occasionally staged in the lagoon that surrounds Mahore. Sailing boats and canoes are available for hire in many ports.

Hiking
Dziani Boundouni, a sulphurous crater lake at the center of the sparsely populated island of Mwali (Mohéli) can be reached on day-walks from its capital, Fomboni. Fit hikers may also head up to the Mt Karthala crater on Grande Comore (guides can be hired locally). Owing to political instability, visitors are advised to check the latest travel advice from an official organization (such as an embassy) before contemplating a trip to Mohéli.

Wildlife
The Comoro Islands' distinctive (and now protected) green turtle can be seen in the marine reserve off Mohéli's southern coast. Trips by motorized pirogues can be arranged with local fishermen from Niumashuwa.

Formerly attached to Madagascar, the Comoros became a separate French Overseas Territory in 1947. The islands achieved internal self-government in December 1961, with a Chamber of Deputies and a Government Council responsible for local administration.

Elections in December 1972 resulted in a large majority for parties advocating independence, and Ahmed Abdallah became President of the Government Council. In June 1973 he was restyled President of the Government.

At a referendum in December 1974 96% of the voters expressed support for independence, despite the opposition of the Mayotte Party, which sought the status of a French Department for the island of Mayotte.

On 3 August 1997 the "political directorate" unilaterally declared Nzwani´s secession from the Comoros, despite an earlier proposal made by Taki to decentralize power and give increased autonomy to the islands.

The separatists subsequently elected Ibrahim as president of a 13-member "politico-administrative co-ordination" which included Abdou Madi, a former Prime Minister during Djohar´s presidency, as spokesperson.

The declaration of independence was condemned by Djoussouf who appealed for French mediation in the crisis. France, however, while denoucing the secession, declared itself in favour of the intervention of the OAU.

The OAU responded by sending a special envoy, Pierre Yéré (Cote d´Ivoire´s ambassador to Ethiopia and the OAU), to the Comoros. Meanwhile, separatist: movements on Mwali held demonstrations, erecting barricades and raising the French flag.

Separatist activity intensified, and on 11 August secessionists declared Mwali´s independence from the Comoros, appointed a president and a prime minister to head a 12-member government, and called for reattachment to France.

President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980s, export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of whichةtablissements Abdallah et Fils was the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorans and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.

Abdallah's firm, whose co-owners included Denard and Kalfane and Company, a Pakistani concern, also profited from managing the importation of materials used by South African firms in developing tourist hotels. Little of the material used in building these resorts was of Comoran origin. Also, once completed, the resorts would be almost entirely owned and managed by non-Comorans. Although tourism, mainly by South Africans who were unwelcome in other African resorts, was widely considered the only promising new industry in Comoros, Abdallah guided its development so that resorts benefited few Comorans other than himself and his associates.

Under Abdallah's tutelage, the Comoran economy finished the 1980s much as it had started the decade--poor, underdeveloped, and dependent on export earnings from cash crops of unpredictable and generally declining value. The critical difference, with enormous implications for the republic's capacity to have some say in its own destiny, was its new status as a nation abjectly in debt. By 1988, the last full year of the Abdallah regime, 80 percent of annual public expenditures were funded by external aid (see Economy , this ch.).


President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980s, export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of which ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils was the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorans and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.

Abdallah's firm, whose co-owners included Denard and Kalfane and Company, a Pakistani concern, also profited from managing the importation of materials used by South African firms in developing tourist hotels. Little of the material used in building these resorts was of Comoran origin. Also, once completed, the resorts would be almost entirely owned and managed by non-Comorans. Although tourism, mainly by South Africans who were unwelcome in other African resorts, was widely considered the only promising new industry in Comoros, Abdallah guided its development so that resorts benefited few Comorans other than himself and his associates.

Under Abdallah's tutelage, the Comoran economy finished the 1980s much as it had started the decade--poor, underdeveloped, and dependent on export earnings from cash crops of unpredictable and generally declining value. The critical difference, with enormous implications for the republic's capacity to have some say in its own destiny, was its new status as a nation abjectly in debt. By 1988, the last full year of the Abdallah regime, 80 percent of annual public expenditures were funded by external aid (see Economy , this ch.).


President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980s, export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of which ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils was the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorans and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.

Abdallah's firm, whose co-owners included Denard and Kalfane and Company, a Pakistani concern, also profited from managing the importation of materials used by South African firms in developing tourist hotels. Little of the material used in building these resorts was of Comoran origin. Also, once completed, the resorts would be almost entirely owned and managed by non-Comorans. Although tourism, mainly by South Africans who were unwelcome in other African resorts, was widely considered the only promising new industry in Comoros, Abdallah guided its development so that resorts benefited few Comorans other than himself and his associates.

Under Abdallah's tutelage, the Comoran economy finished the 1980s much as it had started the decade--poor, underdeveloped, and dependent on export earnings from cash crops of unpredictable and generally declining value. The critical difference, with enormous implications for the republic's capacity to have some say in its own destiny, was its new status as a nation abjectly in debt. By 1988, the last full year of the Abdallah regime, 80 percent of annual public expenditures were funded by external aid (see Economy , this ch.).


President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980s, export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of which ةtablissements Abdallah et Fils was the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorans and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.

Abdallah's firm, whose co-owners included Denard and Kalfane and Company, a Pakistani concern, also profited from managing the importation of materials used by South African firms in developing tourist hotels. Little of the material used in building these resorts was of Comoran origin. Also, once completed, the resorts would be almost entirely owned and managed by non-Comorans. Although tourism, mainly by South Africans who were unwelcome in other African resorts, was widely considered the only promising new industry in Comoros, Abdallah guided its development so that resorts benefited few Comorans other than himself and his associates.

Under Abdallah's tutelage, the Comoran economy finished the 1980s much as it had started the decade--poor, underdeveloped, and dependent on export earnings from cash crops of unpredictable and generally declining value. The critical difference, with enormous implications for the republic's capacity to have some say in its own destiny, was its new status as a nation abjectly in debt. By 1988, the last full year of the Abdallah regime, 80 percent of annual public expenditures were funded by external aid (see Economy , this ch.).



President Abdallah generally put his personal interests ahead of national interests in making economic policy. The result was the creation of a client state whose meager and unpredictable cash crop earnings were supplemented with increasing infusions of foreign aid.

Throughout the 1980s, export earnings from Comoros' four main cash crops--vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, and copra--experienced a wrenching sequence of booms and collapses because of weather and market factors, or else steadily dwindled. The regime's principal form of response was to apply the president's considerable diplomatic skills to developing an extensive network of governments and international organizations willing to extend loans and donate aid. The main suppliers were France, South Africa, the EC, the conservative Arab states, the World Bank (see Glossary) and related organs, and regional financial institutions such as the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa and the African Development Bank. Some assistance went to projects of indisputable value, such as efforts to create independent news media and improve telephone communications with the outside world. Much of the aid, however, was questionable--for example, loans and grants to help the republic meet the payroll for its oversized civil service. Other more plausible projects, such as the protracted development of a seaport at the town of Mutsamudu, construction of paved ring roads linking each island's coastal settlements, and the building of power stations, nonetheless tended to be instances of placing the cart before the horse. That is, capital-intensive improvements to infrastructure had not been coordinated with local development projects; hence, little, if any, domestic commerce existed to benefit from road networks, electrical power, and world-class port facilities. The importation of huge quantities of building materials and construction equipment provided immediate benefits to importexport firms in the islands, of whi ةtablissements Abdallah and Fils ware the largest. In the meantime, the projects were of little immediate use to Comorians and were likely to go underused for years to come.

Throughout the Abdallah period, rice imports drained as much as 50 percent of Comoran export earnings. Projects to increase food self-sufficiency, as one observer noted, "fail[ed] to respond to the largesse" provided by international sponsors such as the European Development Fund and the International Fund for Agricultural Development. The president joined with vanilla growers in resisting international pressure to divert vanillaproducing land to the cultivation of corn and rice for domestic consumption. He also declined to heed World Bank advice to impose tariffs and domestic taxes on imported rice. Abdallah's importexport firm was heavily involved in vanilla exports, as well as in the importation of Far Eastern rice at three times its price at the source.