Angry residents of the cyclone-hit French overseas territory of Mayotte greeted French President Emmanuel Macron during his visit there, video channel Euronews reported on Friday.
“I come from Ouangani, there is no water, there is no supply,” one man told Macron, referring to the capital of Mayotte
‘Should that be normal after six days? Do you think that’s normal?’
Another resident asked Macron whether the sorry state of affairs in Mayotte was also being seen in other French areas, or whether only Mayotte was being let down.
Macron arrived in the Indian Ocean region on Thursday and stayed overnight.
On Saturday, Cyclone Chido hit the area with storm gusts reaching speeds of more than 220 kilometers per hour. It left a trail of destruction. Officially, more than 2,000 people have been injured and 31 have died. However, authorities fear a significantly higher number of fatalities.
Mayotte is located in the Indian Ocean, roughly between the coast of the southeast African country Mozambique and the island state of Madagascar. About 310,000 people live on the archipelago. The average age of the young population is only 23 years.
Macron said he wanted to spend more time with the population and aid workers, seeing it as a sign of respect, as he explained in a video on platform X.
Earlier, the president had announced plans to rebuild Mayotte. During his visit to the archipelago, he claimed that all resources would be made available for this purpose. For those without insurance, Macron plans to set up a compensation fund.
Local prefect François-Xavier Bieuville estimates that there have been several hundred casualties.
Life in Mayotte is fundamentally different from mainland France, more than 8,000 kilometers away. More than three-quarters of the population lives below the poverty line and people have lower disposable incomes than almost any other part of France, including the population of nearby La Réunion.
The economy on the archipelago, which was colonized by France in the mid-19th century, is poorly developed and many people are unemployed and live in makeshift houses.
