Mayotte Fact File
 

Introduction

Mayotte
Background:

Mayotte was ceded to France along with the other islands of the Comoros group in 1843. It was the only island in the archipelago that voted in 1974 to retain its link with France and forego independence.

Geography

Mayotte
Location:

Southern Africa, island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from northern Madagascar to northern Mozambique

Geographic coordinates:

12 50 S, 45 10 E

Map references:

Africa

Area:

total: 374 sq km
land: 374 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries:

0 km

Coastline:

185.2 km

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

Climate:

tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November)

Terrain:

generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic peaks

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Benara 660 m

Natural resources:

NEGL

Land use:

arable land: NA%
permanent crops: NA%
other: NA%

Irrigated land:

NA

Natural hazards:

cyclones during rainy season

Environment - current issues:

NA

Geography - note:

part of Comoro Archipelago; 18 islands

People

Mayotte
Population:

201,234 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:

0-14 years: 46% (male 46,512/female 46,067)
15-64 years: 52.3% (male 56,899/female 48,274)
65 years and over: 1.7% (male 1,756/female 1,726) (2006 est.)

Median age:

total: 17 years
male: 18 years
female: 16 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

3.77% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:

40.95 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:

7.7 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:

4.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:

at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.18 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female
total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:

total: 60.76 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 66.76 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 54.58 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:

total population: 61.76 years
male: 59.57 years
female: 64.02 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:

5.79 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:

NA

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:

NA

HIV/AIDS - deaths:

NA

Nationality:

noun: Mahorais (singular and plural)
adjective: Mahoran

Ethnic groups:

NA

Religions:

Muslim 97%, Christian (mostly Roman Catholic)

Languages:

Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population

Literacy:

definition: NA
total population: NA
male: NA
female: NA

Government

Mayotte
Country name:

conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte
conventional short form: Mayotte

Dependency status:

territorial collectivity of France

Government type:

NA

Capital:

Mamoutzou

Administrative divisions:

none (territorial collectivity of France)

Independence:

none (territorial collectivity of France)

National holiday:

Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)

Constitution:

4 October 1958 (French Constitution)

Legal system:

French law

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Jean-Paul KIHL (since 17 January 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Said Omar OILI (since 8 April 2004)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; president of the General Council elected by the members of the General Council for a six-year term; next election to be held in 2010

Legislative branch:

unicameral General Council or Conseil General (19 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 21 and 28 March 2004 (next to be held in 2007)
election results: percent of vote by party - MDM 23.3%, UMP 22.8%, PS 10.2%, MRC 8.9%, FRAP 6.5%, MPM 1.2%; seats by party - MDM 6, UMP 9, MRC 2, MPM 1, diverse left 1
note: Mayotte elects one member of the French Senate; elections last held 24 September 2001 (next to be held September 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NA; Mayotte also elects one member to the French National Assembly; elections last held 16 June 2002 (next to be held in 2007); results - percent of vote by party - UMP-RPR 55.08%, UDF 44.92%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel

Political parties and leaders:

Democratic Front or FD [Youssouf MOUSSA]; Mahoran Popular Movement or MPM [Ahmed MADI]; Federation of Mahorans or RPR (UMP) [Mansour KAMARDINE]; Force of the Rally and the Alliance for Democracy or FRAP; Movement for Department Status Mayotte or MDM [Mouhoutar SALIM]; Renewed Communist Party of Mayotte or MRC [Omar SIMBA]; Socialist Party or PS (local branch of French Parti Socialiste) [Ibrahim ABUBACAR]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Henri JEAN-BAPTISTE]

Political pressure groups and leaders:

NA

International organization participation:

UPU

Diplomatic representation in the US:

none (territorial collectivity of France)

Diplomatic representation from the US:

none (territorial collectivity of France)

Flag description:

unofficial, local flag with the coat of arms of Mayotte centered on a white field, above which the name of the island appears in red capital letters; the main elements of the coat of arms, flanked on either side by a seahorse, appear above a scroll with the motto RA HACHIRI (We are Vigilant); the only official flag is the national flag of France

Economy

Mayotte
Economy - overview:

Economic activity is based primarily on the agricultural sector, including fishing and livestock raising. Mayotte is not self-sufficient and must import a large portion of its food requirements, mainly from France. The economy and future development of the island are heavily dependent on French financial assistance, an important supplement to GDP. Mayotte's remote location is an obstacle to the development of tourism.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$466.8 million (2003 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):

NA

GDP - real growth rate:

NA%

GDP - per capita (PPP):

$2,600 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Labor force:

48,800 (2000)

Unemployment rate:

38% (1999)

Population below poverty line:

NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

NA%

Budget:

revenues: $NA
expenditures: $73 million; including capital expenditures of $NA (1991 est.)

Agriculture - products:

vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), coffee, copra

Industries:

newly created lobster and shrimp industry, construction

Industrial production growth rate:

NA%

Electricity - production:

NA kWh

Electricity - production by source:

fossil fuel: 0%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0%

Electricity - consumption:

NA kWh

Exports:

$3.44 million f.o.b. (1997)

Exports - commodities:

ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, copra, coconuts, coffee, cinnamon

Exports - partners:

France 80%, Comoros 15%, Reunion (2004)

Imports:

$141.3 million f.o.b. (1997)

Imports - commodities:

food, machinery and equipment, transportation equipment, metals, chemicals

Imports - partners:

France 66%, Africa 14%, Southeast Asia 11% (2004)

Debt - external:

$NA

Economic aid - recipient:

$107.7 million; note - extensive French financial assistance (1995)

Currency (code):

euro (EUR)

Currency code:

EUR

Exchange rates:

euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)

Fiscal year:

calendar year

Communications

Mayotte
Telephones - main lines in use:

10,000 (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

48,100 (2004)

Telephone system:

general assessment: small system administered by French Department of Posts and Telecommunications
domestic: NA
international: country code - 269; microwave radio relay and HF radiotelephone communications to Comoros

Radio broadcast stations:

AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios:

NA

Television broadcast stations:

3 (2001)

Televisions:

3,500 (1994)

Internet country code:

.yt

Internet hosts:

1 (2005)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

NA

Internet users:

NA

Transportation

Mayotte
Airports:

1 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:

total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2005)

Roadways:

total: 93 km
paved: 72 km
unpaved: 21 km

Ports and terminals:

Dzaoudzi

Military

Mayotte
Military - note:

defense is the responsibility of France; small contingent of French forces stationed on the island

Transnational Issues

Mayotte
Disputes - international:

claimed by Comoros

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