Mayotte

Island group of the Comoros, off the east coast of Africa, a collectivité territoriale of France by its own wish; area 374 sq km/144 sq mi; population (1994 est) 109,600. The two main islands are Grande Terre and Petite Terre. The capital is Dzaoudzi. Industries include coffee, copra, vanilla, fishing, cloves, cocoa, and ylang-ylang (oil-yielding tree). The languages spoken are French and Swahili.

Mayotte was a French colony 1843-1914, and later, with the Comoros, an overseas territory of France. In 1974 Mayotte voted to remain a French dependency, and in the following year was accepted for membership to the United Nations.