Comoros: People & Society#
| Population | 794,678 (July 2016 est.) |
|---|---|
| Nationality | noun: Comoran(s) adjective: Comoran |
| Ethnic groups | Antalote, Cafre, Makoa, Oimatsaha, Sakalava |
| Languages | Arabic (official), French (official), Shikomoro (official; a blend of Swahili and Arabic) (Comorian) |
| Religions | Sunni Muslim 98%, Roman Catholic 2% note: Islam is the state religion |
| Demographic profile | Comoros’ population is a m�lange of Arabs, Persians, Indonesians, Africans, and Indians, and the much smaller number of Europeans that settled on the islands between the 8th and 19th centuries, when they served as a regional trade hub. The Arab and Persian influence is most evident in the islands’ overwhelmingly Muslim majority – about 98% of Comorans are Sunni Muslims. The country is densely populated, averaging nearly 350 people per square mile, although this varies widely among the islands, with Anjouan being the most densely populated. Given the large share of land dedicated to agriculture and Comoros’ growing population, habitable land is becoming increasingly crowded. The combination of increasing population pressure on limited land and resources, widespread poverty, and poor job prospects motivates thousands of Comorans each year to attempt to illegally migrate using small fishing boats to the neighboring island of Mayotte, which is a French territory. The majority of legal Comoran migration to France came after Comoros’ independence from France in 1975, with the flow peaking in the mid-1980s. At least 150,000 to 200,000 people of Comoran citizenship or descent live abroad, mainly in France, where they have gone seeking a better quality of life, job opportunities, higher education (Comoros has no universities), advanced health care, and to finance elaborate traditional wedding ceremonies (aada). Remittances from the diaspora are an economic mainstay, in 2013 representing approximately 25% of Comoros’ GDP and significantly more than the value of its exports of goods and services (only 15% of GDP). Grand Comore, Comoros’ most populous island, is both the primary source of emigrants and the main recipient of remittances. Most remittances are spent on private consumption, but this often goes toward luxury goods and the aada and does not contribute to economic development or poverty reduction. Although the majority of the diaspora is now French-born with more distant ties to Comoros, it is unclear whether they will sustain the current level of remittances. |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 40.1% (male 158,809/female 159,840) 15-24 years: 19.23% (male 73,947/female 78,831) 25-54 years: 32.58% (male 122,936/female 135,962) 55-64 years: 4.21% (male 14,850/female 18,611) 65 years and over: 3.89% (male 14,321/female 16,571) (2016 est.) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 75.6% youth dependency ratio: 70.7% elderly dependency ratio: 4.9% potential support ratio: 20.4% (2015 est.) |
| Median age | total: 19.6 years male: 19 years female: 20.2 years (2016 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 1.71% (2016 est.) |
| Birth rate | 26.9 births/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Death rate | 7.4 deaths/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Net migration rate | -2.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.) |
| Urbanization | urban population: 28.3% of total population (2015) rate of urbanization: 2.67% annual rate of change (2010-15 est.) |
| Major urban areas - population | MORONI (capital) 56,000 (2014) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 0.94 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 0.9 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.8 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2016 est.) |
| Mother's mean age at first birth | 24.6 note: median age at first birth among women 25-29 (2012 est.) |
| Maternal mortality rate | 335 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 61.8 deaths/1,000 live births male: 72.2 deaths/1,000 live births female: 51 deaths/1,000 live births (2016 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 64.2 years male: 61.9 years female: 66.6 years (2016 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 3.47 children born/woman (2016 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 19.4% (2012) |
| Health expenditures | 6.7% of GDP (2014) |
| Hospital bed density | 2.2 beds/1,000 population (2006) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 92.6% of population rural: 89.1% of population total: 90.1% of population unimproved: urban: 7.4% of population rural: 10.9% of population total: 9.9% of population (2015 est.) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 48.3% of population rural: 30.9% of population total: 35.8% of population unimproved: urban: 51.7% of population rural: 69.1% of population total: 64.2% of population (2015 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | NA |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 5.8% (2014) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight | 16.9% (2012) |
| Education expenditures | 5.1% of GDP (2014) |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 77.8% male: 81.8% female: 73.7% (2015 est.) |
| School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) | total: 11 years male: 11 years female: 11 years (2013) |