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.

Southern Africa, island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-half of the way from northern Madagascar to northern Mozambique
12 50 S, 45 10 E
Africa
total: 374 sq km ; land: 374 sq km ; water: 0 sq km
slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
0 km
185.2 km
territorial sea: 12 nm ; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season during northeastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May to November)
generally undulating, with deep ravines and ancient volcanic peaks
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m ; highest point: Benara 660 m
NEGL
arable land: NA% ; permanent crops: NA% ; other: NA%
NA


cyclones during rainy season
NA

part of Comoro Archipelago; 18 islands
208,783 (July 2007 est.)
0-14 years: 45.8% (male 48,016/female 47,533) ; 15-64 years: 52.5% (male 59,111/female 50,437) ; 65 years and over: 1.8% (male 1,864/female 1,822) (2007 est.)
total: 17.1 years ; male: 18.1 years ; female: 16.1 years (2007 est.)
3.617% (2007 est.)
40.35 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
7.53 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
3.35 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female ; under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female ; 15-64 years: 1.172 male(s)/female ; 65 years and over: 1.023 male(s)/female ; total population: 1.092 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
total: 59.51 deaths/1,000 live births ; male: 65.33 deaths/1,000 live births ; female: 53.52 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total population: 62.16 years ; male: 59.94 years ; female: 64.45 years (2007 est.)
5.69 children born/woman (2007 est.)
NA
NA
NA
noun: Mahorais (singular and plural) ; adjective: Mahoran
NA
Muslim 97%, Christian (mostly Roman Catholic) 3%
Mahorian (a Swahili dialect), French (official language) spoken by 35% of the population
definition: NA ; total population: NA ; male: NA ; female: NA


conventional long form: Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte ; conventional short form: Mayotte
NA
name: Mamoudzou ; geographic coordinates: 12 46 S, 45 13 E ; time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)

none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
4 October 1958 (French Constitution)
the laws of France, where applicable, apply
18 years of age; universal
chief of state: President Nicolas SARKOZY (since 16 May 2007); 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
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%, other 27.1%; 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 in 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 55.1%, UDF 44.9%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1
Supreme Court or Tribunal Superieur d'Appel
Democratic Front or FD [Youssouf MOUSSA]; Mahoran Popular Movement or MPM [Ahmed MADI]; Federation of Mahorans or UMP-RPR [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 [Ibrahim ABUBACAR] (local branch of French Parti Socialiste); Union for French Democracy or UDF [Henri JEAN-BAPTISTE]
NA
UPU
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
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
none (territorial overseas collectivity of France)
departmental collectivity of France




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.
$953.6 million (2005 est.)
$NA
NA%
$4,900 (2005 est.)
agriculture: NA% ; industry: NA% ; services: NA%
44,560 (2002)

25.4% (2005)
NA%
lowest 10%: NA% ; highest 10%: NA%

1.7% (2005)

revenues: $420 million ; expenditures: $394 million (2005)

vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume essence), coffee, copra
newly created lobster and shrimp industry, construction
NA%
NA kWh
fossil fuel: 0% ; hydro: 0% ; nuclear: 0% ; other: 0%
139.2 million kWh (2005)













$6.5 million f.o.b. (2005)
ylang-ylang (perfume essence), vanilla, copra, coconuts, coffee, cinnamon
France 43%, Comoros 36%, Reunion 15% (2006)
$341 million f.o.b.; note - excludes petroleum imports (2005)
France 49%, Seychelles 8.8%, China 4.1%, South Africa 2.8% (2006)


$NA


$NA
euro (EUR)
EUR
euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)
calendar year
$201.3 million; note - extensive French financial assistance (2005)
10,000 (2002)
48,100 (2005)
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
AM 1, FM 5, shortwave 0 (2001)
NA
3 (2001)
3,500 (1994)
.yt
1 (2007)
NA
NA

1 (2007)
total: 1 ; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)




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


Dzaoudzi







defense is the responsibility of France; a small contingent of French forces is stationed on the island
claimed by Comoros



