Comoros Heads to Paris as It Seeks $5 Billion in Investments
Comoros Heads to Paris as It Seeks $5 Billion in Investments
Comoros, an Indian Ocean archipelago between Mozambique and Madagascar, has big fund-raising plans.
With an export-dependent economy of just $1.2 billion, two-term President Azali Assoumani is targeting to mobilize 4.5 billion euros ($5 billion) in infrastructure and tourism projects when his officials meet prospective partners in Paris next month.
The government plans to tap private and public investors for deals, Economy Minister Houmed Msaidie said Tuesday in an interview in the capital, Moroni. The government reviewed its initial target of as much as $1.1 billion after a fresh assessment of projects that include roads and energy, Msaidie said.
Comoros is prone to extreme weather disasters and was among the countries hit by Cyclone Kenneth in April, claiming lives and damaging infrastructure, according to the International Monetary Fund, which gave it $12.3 million to help with reconstruction.
“Donations won’t be refused” and selling debt could also be an option, said Msaidie. The fundraising will take place in Paris on Dec. 2 and 3, he said.
French Ties
The meetings will happen in the French capital partly because of the ties between the countries, with one third of Comorians living in France, according to Msaidie. The nation of around 830,000 people gained independence from France more than four decades ago.
President Assoumani won a second term in office in March after pledging to stimulate economic growth through the development of tourism in the nation.
Comoros is one of the world’s biggest producers of ylang ylang, an essence used in perfumes, which together with cloves and vanilla accounted for about 90% of its exports in 2018, according to the Comorian central bank.
To contact the reporters on this story: Faiza Soule Youssouf in Johannesburg at fsouleyousso@bloomberg.net;Yinka Ibukun in Accra at yibukun@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: David Malingha at dmalingha@bloomberg.net, James Hertling
©2019 Bloomberg L.P.