october-2018

BUSINESS /53
Geography
All islands
Endless white beaches with clear turquoise water and lagoons.
Endemic animal species
Mauritian flying fox
(Mauritius, Réunion)
Réunion
Volcanic island
covered in craters.
Mostly mountainous,
with fertile lowlands
along the coast.
Mauritius
Volcanic island with a
central plateau rimmed by
mountains. The island is
surrounded by coral reefs.
Comoros
Volcanic islands.
Interiors vary from
steep mountains
to low hills.
Seychelles
About half of the
islands are granite,
with narrow coastal
strips and hills
rising to more than
900 m.
Seychelles
Blue Pigeon/
Pizon Olande
(Seychelles)
Pink pigeon
(Mauritius)
Mayotte
Sunbird
(Mayotte)
Livingstone’s fruit
bat/Comoro flying fox
(Comoros)
Source: tripadvisor.com, worldtravelguide.net, factsking.com
Passport
Name
Vanilla Islands
Location
Indian Ocean
Island nations
Mauritius, Seychelles, Comoros, Madagascar, Mayotte, Réunion
Biggest island
Madagascar
Smallest island (by area) Mayotte
Currency
Mauritian Rupee (MUR), Seychelles Rupee (SCR), Comoran Franc (KMF), (Madagascar)
Malagasy Ariary (MGA), (Mayotte & Réunion) Euro (EUR)
Local time
UTC +4h: Mauritius, Seychelles, Réunion; UTC +3h: Comoros, Mayotte, Madagscar
Languages
Mauritius: English; Seychelles: Seychelles Creole, English, and French; Comoros: Comorian,
Arabic, French; Madagascar: Malagasy, French; Mayotte: French; Réunion: French
Flight info
Kenya Airways operates four direct daily flights to Mauritius
Touristic highlights
• The Seven Coloured
Earths, an area of sand
dunes comprising sand
of seven distinct colours.
• Plage de Moya,
a beach formed by three
old craters.
• Piton de la Fournaise,
one of the most active
volcanoes in the world.
• Diving, snorkelling
and turtle-spotting.
• Anse Source d’Argent,
a beach of pure-white
sand and unique
boulders.
• Isalo National Park,
which is often called
“Jurassic Park”.
Mauritius
Mayotte
Réunion
Comoros
Seychelles
Madagascar
Local food
Mauritius
Dishes such as roti, curry,
samosa, chutney, rougaille (a
Creole tomato sauce).
Mayotte
Fresh seafood
with rice and
coconut milk.
Réunion
Simple and spicy.
Locally made rum is
one of the favourite
drinks here.
1,000 km
Seychelles
Fish, seafood and shellfish
dishes, often accompanied
with (curry) rice.
Comoros
Fresh seafood
with rice and
meat. A
special dish
is lobster
boiled in a
rich vanilla
sauce.
Madagascar
Rice with loaka, a tomato-based sauce.
Common ingredients are garlic, onions,
ginger, tomatoes, curry, coconut milk,
vanilla, cloves and turmeric.
Sources: britannica.com, cia.gov
Sources: britannica.com, wits.worldbank.org, cia.gov Sources: britannica.com, justfunfacts.com
Mayotte
High volcanic peaks and
lush evergreen tropical
forests surrounded by
coral reefs.
Population, main industries and key products
Main
industries
Export
products
Agriculture
products
Mayotte
Lobster and shrimp industry,
construction.
Ylang-ylang (perfume
essence), vanilla, copra,
coconuts, coffee, cinnamon.
Vanilla, ylang-ylang,
coffee, copra.
Madagascar
Meat processing,
soap, breweries,
tanneries, sugar,
textiles, glassware,
cement.
Vanilla, nickel (unwrought),
cloves.
Population
(2017)
25
million
Coffee, vanilla, sugarcane,
cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava
(tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts.
Madagascar
Varies from coast to
coast. At the central plateau:
mountains, volcanoes, and rice
fields. Along the
coast: fertile
lowlands and
coral reefs.
237,000
Comoros
Mayotte
Comoros
Tourism, perfume distillation.
Vanilla, ylang-ylang (perfume
essence), cloves.
Vanilla, ylang-ylang, jasmine, cassis,
cloves, perfume essences, copra,
coconuts, bananas, cassava (tapioca).
Madagascar
808,000
Seychelles
Vanilla
Islands
Réunion
Mauritius
95,000
1,260,000
853,000
Lemur
(Madagascar)
Fossa
(Madagascar)
Mauritius
Gold dust
day Gecko
(Réunion,
Madagascar)
Mongoose
lemur
(Comoros)
Seychelles
Fishing, tourism, processing
of coconuts and vanilla, coir
(coconut fibre) rope, boat-building,
printing, furniture, beverages.
Canned tuna, frozen fish, petroleum
products.
Coconuts, cinnamon, vanilla, sweet
potatoes, cassava (tapioca),
bananas, broiler chickens, tuna fish.
Textiles and clothing, watches and
clocks, jewellery, optical goods, toys
and games, cut flowers.
Clothing and textiles, sugar, cut
flowers, molasses, fish, primates
(for research).
Sugar, sugar derivatives, tea,
tobacco, vegetables, fruits, flowers,
fishing.
Réunion
Sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft
items, flower-oil extraction.
Sugarcane, essential oils, bourbon
vanilla, fish and seafood (mainly tuna,
swordfish and Patagonian toothfish).
Sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical
fruits, vegetables, corn.
Sources: wikipedia.org, factsking.com, justfunfacts.com