Agulhas and Somali Current Large Marine Ecosystems Project

History

• The Comoros was frequented by travelers from Africa, Madagascar, Indonesia and Arabia before the first Europeans encountered the islands.
• The Comoros became an official French colony in 1912.
• In 1961, the Comoros was granted autonomous rule. In 1975, the country broke all ties with France and established independent rule, with Ahmed Abdallah as president, although the islan of Mayotte is still administered by France.
• A month later, Abdallah was overthrown by Justice Minister Ali Soilih, marking the beginning of a lengthy period of political instability. Since independence, the country has experienced more than 20 coups d’etat and several attempts at secession, caused by friction between the separate islands of the archipelago.
• A power-sharing agreement signed in 2003 gave the individual islands semi-autonomous status and led to elections for a national assembly in 2004.
• In 2006, the country’s first-ever peaceful and democratic exchange of power occurred. Elections were won by Ahmed Abdallah Mohamed Sambi, the current president of the country.

Geography

• The Comoros archipelago is made up of Grand Comoro (Ngazidja), Mohéli (Mwali), Anjouan (Nzwani) and Mayotte (Mahoré). These islands, as well as many minor islets, constitute an archipelago of volcanic origin.
• The archipelago is situated in the Indian Ocean, in the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique.
• At 2,235 km², it is one of the smallest countries in Africa [http://www.mongabay.com/igapo/world_statistics_by_area.htm].
• The interior of the islands vary from steep mountains to low hills.
• The climate is generally tropical and mild.

Demographics

• With an estimated population of 711,417, the Comoros is one of the least populous countries in Africa, although it has a very high population density.
• Sunni Islam is the dominant religion, representing 98% of the population. Roman Catholic, Malagasy and Indian minorities also exist, as well as Creole speakers and a small Chinese population.
• There are three official languages in the Comoros – French, Arabic and Shikomoro, which is a blend of Swahili and Arabic. Total literacy was estimated at 62.5% in 2004.

Economy

• The Comoros is one of the poorest countries in the world. GDP in 2002 was $441 million.
• Agriculture, including fishing, hunting and forestry, contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labour force and provides most of the exports.
• The main industries are tourism and perfume distillation. The Comoros is the world's largest producer of ylang-ylang and a major producer of vanilla.
• The low level of education of the labour force contributes to a subsistence level of economic activity, high unemployment (14.3%) and a heavy dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance.
• The Comoros is not self-sufficient in food production. Rice, the main staple, accounts for the bulk of imports. The country also imports consumer goods, petroleum products, cement and transport equipment.
• The official currency is the Comorian franc (KMF).

Social services and infrastructure

• The Comoros government is striving to upgrade education and technical training and to improve health services.
• Many roads in the rural areas of the Comoros remain unpaved. Some villages are not linked to the main road system, while others are connected by tracks usable only by four-wheel-drive vehicles.
• The islands’ ports are rudimentary. Only small vessels can approach the existing quays on Grande Comoro Island (Ngazidja)(Comore is the French spelling). Large tankers and cargo ships must anchor offshore where they are typically off loaded by smaller boats.

Marine environment

• Fishing is practiced over more than 160,000 km² of sea, including 900 km² of continental shelf and 427 km of coastline.
• The fishing area has potential resources estimated at 33,000 metric tonnes per year, 64% if which are currently exploited.
• Coastal ocean areas are over-exploited while resources further out to sea remain largely under-exploited. This is because local fishers lack the techniques and equipment required for deep sea fishing. (Although Comoran fishers have fished to several hundred meters for hundreds of years using the indigenous mazé fishing technique, utilising long handlines from outrigger canoes at night).

Fisheries

• The fish catch of the Comoros increased from 6,000 metric tons in 1985 to 162,000 metric tonnes in 2004, putting an end to imports of fish for daily consumption. The fishing industry currently employs around 6% of the population, providing 8,500 direct and 24,000 indirect jobs. It accounts for approximately 21% of the value of agricultural crops.
• The majority of fishing is conducted by locals for subsistence purposes. Over 4,500 registered fishers use traditional boats to fish in nearshore waters.
• In 1998, approximately 40 purse seiners and 20 surface longliners from the European Union were licensed to fish for tuna in Comorian waters in return for a license fee. This fisheries agreement will remain in place until 2010. Although the agreement restricts the number of foreign fishing vessels in Comorian waters, some worry that a lack of stipulated quotas could lead to overfishing.
• The government’s goal is to increase fishery production by over 50%, to create more than 5,000 new jobs in the industry and to raise the sector’s contribution to GDP to over 13% by 2009.

Sources