The Union of Comoros, made up of the three islands of Grand Comore, Anjouan_and_Moheli, faces a range of natural disasters including volcanic eruptions, cyclones, flash floods, torrential rains, landslides, drought, pest outbreaks, epidemics, tsunamis and tidal waves. In addition, it is very vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, due to an economy largely based on subsistence agriculture and fisheries.

Agriculture, which engages about 55% of the population, is highly dependent on the rainfall regime and therefore sensitive to changes in temperatures and rainfall patterns, more frequent extreme events and sea level rise.

Women in Comoros are particularly vulnerable to climate change as 67% of them are employed in the agricultural sector.

Fisheries, which also play an important role in the country's food security is facing a modification and reduction of marine habitats, as well as the proliferation of toxic algae and the disappearance of nursery areas for marine wildlife, including corals and mangroves.

While drought may not be a common occurrence in Comoros, water scarcity certainly is. Access to surface water on all three islands is a challenge. The main island of Grande Comore has no surface water, requiring coastal towns to exploit marginally fresh groundwater resources. The rural upland communities, making up 50% of the island’s population, rely solely on rainwater harvesting. On the two more remote and poorer islands of Anjouan and Moheli, there are no proven groundwater resources and the people living there are completely reliant on seasonally variable streams.

People in other parts of the island struggle to meet their domestic water supply needs and farmers do not have access to sufficient water for irrigation.