ACOG - Comoros  - IBM

Geography

Location: Southern Africa, group of islands in the Mozambique Channel, about two-thirds of the way between northern Madagascar and northern Mozambique

Area:
total area: 2,170 sq km
land area: 2,170 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than 12 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 340 km


People

Population: 549,338 (July 1995 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 48% (female 131,334; male 132,327)
15-64 years: 49% (female 137,083; male 133,629)
65 years and over: 3% (female 7,860; male 7,105)

Population growth rate: 3.56% (1995 est.)

Birth rate: 46.22 births/1,000 population

Death rate: 10.6 deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population

Infant mortality rate: 77.3 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 58.27 years
male: 56.04 years
female: 60.57 years

Total fertility rate: 6.73 children born/woman

Ethnic divisions: Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava

Religions: Sunni Muslim 86%, Roman Catholic 14%

Languages: Arabic (official), French (official), Comoran (a blend of Swahili and Arabic)

Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1980)
total population: 48%
male: 56%
female: 40%


Government

Names:
conventional long form: Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros
conventional short form: Comoros

Type: independent republic

Capital: Moroni

Independence: 6 July 1975 (from France)

Constitution: 7 June 1992


Economy

National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $370 million

National product real growth rate: 0.9%

National product per capita: $700

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 15%

Unemployment rate: 15.8%

Electricity:
capacity: 16,000 kW
production: 17 million kWh
consumption per capita: 27 kWh



Olympic Factoid
Closing Ceremony of the 1996 Games involved a crew of 2,100 who worked with more than 3,500 performers as well as thousands of athletes who celebrated on the field of Olympic Stadium.