The President of the Comoros Islands Ahmad ‘Abdallah Muhammad Sambi plans to “Arabicize the country” and strengthen ties with other members of the Arab League, he told the London-based A-Sharq Al-Awsat.
“The Arabs are our brothers,” he told the newspaper, “and I’m an Arab Comoran. There are people who believe the Comorans voted for me in the presidential elections hoping that Arabs would pay more attention to my country, and that’s what we’ve decided to do.”
Comoros, a group of islands off southeastern Africa, is the smallest and poorest member of the Arab League. It has endured 19 coups or attempted coups since gaining independence from France in 1975, making it one of the most unstable countries in the world.
Sambi was sworn into office last week after winning the May 14 presidential elections. He has formed a new eight-member government, which includes one female minister.
Under the Comorian constitution, the union presidency rotates every four years between the Comoros’ three islands.
Fewer than 700,000 citizens live on the Comoros Islands, of them 98 percent are Sunni Muslims. The country is considered one of the poorest in the world, with 60% of its citizens living below the poverty line. Sambi has said part of his plan to tackle poverty is by canceling external debts.