Comoros: Government#
| Country name | conventional long form: Union of the Comoros conventional short form: Comoros local long form: Udzima wa Komori (Comorian); Union des Comores (French); Jumhuriyat al Qamar al Muttahidah (Arabic) local short form: Komori (Comorian); Comores (French); Juzur al Qamar (Arabic) etymology: name derives from the Arabic designation "Juzur al Qamar" meaning "Islands of the Moon" |
|---|---|
| Government type | federal presidential republic |
| Capital | Moroni
Moroni
geographic coordinates: 11 42 S, 43 14 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) |
| Administrative divisions | 3 islands and 4 municipalities*; Anjouan (Ndzuwani), Domoni*, Fomboni*, Grande Comore (N'gazidja), Moheli (Mwali), Moroni*, Moutsamoudou* |
| Independence | 6 July 1975 (from France) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 6 July (1975) |
| Constitution | previous 1996; latest ratified 23 December 2001; amended 2009, 2014 (2016) |
| Legal system | mixed legal system of Islamic religious law, the French civil code of 1975, and customary law |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of the Comoros dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Azail ASSOUMANI (since 26 May 2016); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government head of government: President Azail ASSOUMANI (since 26 May 2016) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections/appointments: the Union presidency rotates among the 3 islands; president directly elected by simple majority popular vote in 2 rounds for a single nonrenewable 5-year term (in the first round or primary, 3 candidates with the highest vote count by voters on the island concerned compete in the second round; second round winner determined by simple majority vote by voters on all 3 islands; election last held on 21 February 2016 and second round held 10 April 2016 (next to be held in 2021); note - in addition to the Union president, each island elects its own president election results: Azail ASSOUMANI elected president in the second round of voting by a plurality; percent of vote in first round - Mohamed Ali SOILIHI 17.6%, Mouigni BARAKA 15.1%, Azali ASSOUMANI 15%, Fahmi Said IBRAHIM 14.5%; percent of vote in second round - Azail ASSOUMANI 41%, Mohamed Ali SOILIHI 39.9%; Mouigni BARAKA 19.1% |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral Assembly of the Union (33 seats; 24 members elected by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed and 9 members indirectly selected by island assemblies; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 25 January and 22 February 2015 (next to be held in 2020) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UPDC 8, PJ 7, RDC 2, CRC 2, RADHI 1, PEC 1, independents 3; note - in addition 9 seats will be filled by nominations from the 3 island assemblies |
| Judicial branch | highest court(s): Supreme Court or Cour Supreme (consists of 7 judges); Constitutional Court (consists of 8 members) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges - 2 selected by the president of the Union, 2 by the Assembly of the Union, and 1 each by the 3 island councils; judges appointed for life; Constitutional Court members appointed - 1 by the president, 1 each by the 3 vice presidents, 1 by the Assembly, and 1 each by the island executives; all members serve 6-year renewable terms subordinate courts: Court of Appeals (in Moroni); Tribunal de premiere instance; island village (community) courts; religious courts |
| Political parties and leaders | Convention for the Renewal of the Comoros or CRC (AZALI Assoumani) Democratic Rally of the Comoros or RDC (Mouigni BARAKA) Juwa Party or PJ (Ahmed Abdallah SAMBI) Party for the Comorian Agreement (Partie Pour l'Entente Commorienne) or PEC (Fahmi Said IBRAHIM) Rally for an Alternative of Harmonious and Integrated Development or RADHI (Abdou SOEFO) Rally with a Development Intiiative for Enlightened Youth or RIDJA (Said Larifou) Union for the Development of the Comoros or UPDC (Mohamed HALIFA) |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | Federation Comorienne des Consomateurs or FCC (Mohamed Said Abdallah MCHANGANA) Mouvement des Entreprises comorienne or MODEC (Faharate HOUSSEIN) Union des Chambres de Commerce et de l'Industrie et de l'Agriculture or UCCIA (Fahmy THABIT) Confederation des Travailleurs Comoriens or CTCother: environmentalists |
| International organization participation | ACP, AfDB, AMF, AOSIS, AU, CAEU (candidates), COMESA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OIF, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer) |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Soilihi Mohamed SOILIHI (since 18 November 2014) chancery: Mission to the US, 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 418, New York, NY 10017 telephone: (1) (212) 750-1637 FAX: (1) (212) 750-1657 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | the US does not have an embassy in Comoros; the US Ambassador to Madagascar is accredited to Comoros |
| Flag description | four equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), white, red, and blue, with a green isosceles triangle based on the hoist; centered within the triangle is a white crescent with the convex side facing the hoist and four white, five-pointed stars placed vertically in a line between the points of the crescent; the horizontal bands and the four stars represent the four main islands of the archipelago - Mwali, N'gazidja, Ndzuwani, and Mahore (Mayotte - department of France, but claimed by Comoros) note: the crescent, stars, and color green are traditional symbols of Islam |
| National symbol(s) | four stars and crescent; national colors: green, white |
| National anthem | name: "Udzima wa ya Masiwa" (The Union of the Great Islands) lyrics/music: Said Hachim SIDI ABDEREMANE/Said Hachim SIDI ABDEREMANE and Kamildine ABDALLAH note: adopted 1978 |