How do household living costs differ between Ngazidja, Ndzuwani and Mwali in Comoros?

Costs differ according to island, urban or rural location, housing status, import access, infrastructure and inter-island transport. Food, water, energy and mobility can therefore cost different amounts even for households with similar incomes.

Which household expenses have risen most in Comoros since 2020?

From 2020 to 2024, real rents rose by 49.8%, the transport price index by 35.5% and food prices by 28.8%. The combined housing, water, electricity and gas index rose by 31.8%, while health prices rose by 16.3%.

How should a household estimate water and electricity costs in Comoros?

The household should record its island, connection status, consumption and spending on alternatives such as stored water, generators, fuel, batteries or private supply. SONELEC supplies electricity and SONEDE supplies water, but reliable nationwide current tariff tables are not available and service interruptions can create additional expenses.

Why can health care create high direct household costs in Comoros?

Households pay a large share of health spending directly: out-of-pocket payments represented 67.7% of current health expenditure. Medicines, diagnostics, referrals and transport to a public or private facility can add to the direct charge for treatment.

Can remittances or social assistance be counted as regular income for a household budget in Comoros?

Remittances represented 23% of GDP in 2023 and may support household costs, but their amount and timing vary by family. Available social-support figures come from targeted or historical programmes, so they should not be treated as a universal current entitlement.

Costs in Comoros

Household costs in Comoros vary sharply between Ngazidja (Grande Comore), Ndzuwani (Anjouan) and Mwali (Mohéli), as well as between urban and rural areas, rented and owned homes, and households with different access to imports and infrastructure. Housing, food, transport, health care, utilities, education and communication all affect the budget. National indicators show rising costs, but they do not represent one standard household budget for every island or income group.

Tip

Build your budget for the specific island, location, housing arrangement and household size rather than using one national average for Comoros. Give priority to housing, food, utilities, transport and direct health costs, and keep irregular expenses such as service interruptions, medical travel and imported goods visible. Treat remittances and social assistance as variable support unless you can document their regular amount and timing.

byNassima&Said

Comoros has no single national office that publishes a complete household budget for every situation. The national statistics institute INSEED collects household and price data, while public services, private providers, markets and local arrangements determine what households actually pay. The EHCVM 2024, a household living-conditions survey covering 5,487 households, recorded a national poverty rate of 46.1%, compared with 51.3% in 2020. Consumption inequality also changed, with the Gini index falling from 34.2 to 30.3. These figures describe population-wide conditions, not the exact monthly needs of one household. From 2020 to 2024, the consumer price index rose by 28.1% cumulatively, and inflation in 2024 was 5.04%. Housing costs increased especially strongly: real rents rose by 49.8%, while the combined housing, water, electricity and gas index rose by 31.8%. Housing costs depend on the island, location, ownership status, household size and access to services. Electricity is supplied by SONELEC and water by SONEDE, while ARSEE regulates energy and water matters. Electricity access reached 89.8% in 2023, but practical reliability can create additional costs for generators, fuel, batteries or storage. In Grand Moroni, the 2024 baseline for water availability was 8.6 hours per day, with a project target of 16 hours per day by 2029. There is no reliable current national tariff table for all electricity and water situations, and some tariffs have been set through administrative decisions. Real electricity bill spending fell by 7.5% between 2020 and 2024, but this may reflect lower consumption as well as network expansion, so it should not be read as a simple price reduction. Safe sanitation covered 49% of the population in 2024, and households without reliable infrastructure may pay for alternative water or sanitation arrangements. Food prices rose by 28.8% from 2020 to 2024. Rice distributed through ONICOR rose by 30.4% in real household spending, while poisson bwere rose by 47.2%; spending on banane Kontrike fell by 15.6% and poisson Mbassi by 17.6%. Prices and availability depend on imports, ports, inter-island transport, season, local production and fishing. The Poverty and Equity Brief reported moderate or severe food insecurity for 44.4% of the population. Transport costs rose by 35.5% on the price index. Minibuses serve much of the island transport system, while maritime connections and domestic flights connect the islands. A historical minibus benchmark of KMF 500 to KMF 700 per trip and historical air fares of US$100 to US$150 are not current national tariffs; the air benchmark was about three to four times the cost of sea travel. Health care combines public and private facilities, primary care, referrals, medicines, diagnostics and emergency services. Out-of-pocket spending, meaning money paid directly by households, accounted for 67.7% of current health expenditure, and health expenditure represented 8.4% of GDP in 2022. Health prices rose by 16.3% from 2020 to 2024, while travel to a facility, unavailable medicines and referrals can add costs. Education costs include school materials, transport and private or public fees where applicable. The education price index rose by 6.1% from 2020 to 2024, and shortages of textbooks and learning materials can shift costs to families. Communication costs include prepaid mobile data, calls, fixed internet and mobile money. Comores Télécom packages included KMF 250 for 150 MB over two days, KMF 1,000 for 700 MB over seven days, KMF 5,000 for 10 GB over 30 days and KMF 15,000 for 150 GB over 30 days; these are cited package examples, not a complete current market list. Internet use was 33% in 2024, with 940,000 active mobile-broadband subscriptions. Communication prices rose by 9.7% on the index, while real telecommunications spending rose by 57.6% from 2020 to 2024. Family support is fragmented: targeted cash or in-kind programmes, nutrition assistance, community support, family transfers and remittances may help, but no universal cost benefit is established by the available evidence. A 2021 pilot paid KMF 27,500 to 114 households, and cash or in-kind support reached 302 children and young people in 2023; these are historical programme figures, not a current general entitlement. Remittances represented 23% of GDP in 2023 and can be a major household resource, but they vary by family and should not be treated as guaranteed income. Leisure, culture, restaurants and hotels also affect discretionary spending; their price indices rose by 14.3% and 30.2% respectively from 2020 to 2024, while COVID-19 reduced the completeness of earlier spending surveys. A realistic budget should therefore record the island, town or village, housing arrangement, household size, regular income, import dependence, transport needs, health risks, school costs, communication use and access to water and electricity. Imported food, energy, port delays, inter-island transport and climate, cyclone or cholera shocks can change costs quickly.