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Comoros Economy 1996

Overview:

One of the world's poorest countries, Comoros is made up of several islands that have poor transportation links, a young and rapidly increasing population, and few natural resources. The low educational level of the labor force contributes to a subsistence level of economic activity, high unemployment, and a heavy dependence on foreign grants and technical assistance. Agriculture, including fishing, hunting, and forestry, is the leading sector of the economy. It contributes 40% to GDP, employs 80% of the labor force, and provides most of the exports. The country is not self-sufficient in food production; rice, the main staple, accounts for 90% of imports. The government is struggling to upgrade education and technical training, to privatize commercial and industrial enterprises, to improve health services, to diversify exports, and to reduce the high population growth rate. Continued foreign support is essential if the goal of 4% annual GDP growth is to be reached in the late 1990s.

National product:

GDP - purchasing power parity - $370 million (1994 est.)

National product real growth rate:

0.9% (1994 est.)

National product per capita:

$700 (1994 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

15% (1993 est.)

Unemployment rate:

15.8% (1989)

Budget:

revenues:

$83 million

expenditures:

$92 million, including capital expenditures of $32 million (1992)

Exports:

$13.7 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)

commodities:

vanilla, ylang-ylang, cloves, perfume oil, copra

partners:

US 44%, France 40%, Germany 6%, Africa 5% (1992)

Imports:

$40.9 million (f.o.b., 1993 est.)

commodities:

rice and other foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement, consumer goods

partners:

France 34%, South Africa 14%, Kenya 8%, Japan 4% (1992)

External debt:

$160 million (1992 est.)

Industrial production:

growth rate -6.5% (1989 est.); accounts for 6% of GDP

Electricity:

capacity:

16,000 kW

production:

17 million kWh

consumption per capita:

27 kWh (1993)

Industries:

perfume distillation, textiles, furniture, jewelry, construction materials, soft drinks

Agriculture:

accounts for 40% of GDP; most of population works in subsistence agriculture and fishing; plantations produce cash crops for export - vanilla, cloves, perfume essences, copra; principal food crops - coconuts, bananas, cassava; world's leading producer of essence of ylang-ylang (for perfumes) and second-largest producer of vanilla; large net food importer

Economic aid:

recipient:

US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY80-89), $10 million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $435 million; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $22 million; Communist countries (1970-89), $18 million

Currency:

1 Comoran franc (CF) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates:

Comoran francs (CF) per US$1 - 297.07 (January 1995), 416.40 (1994), 254.57 (1993), 264.69 (1992), 282.11 (1991), 272.26 (1990)

note:

beginning 12 January 1994, the Comoran franc was devalued to 75 per French franc from 50 per French franc at which it had been fixed since 1948

Fiscal year:

calendar year

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