Since ancient times, deposits of precious stones and an abundance of spices growing on the island have attracted merchants and sailors. Nowadays, tourists come here for the picturesque mountain scenery and excellent beaches.

Now a fuller picture has emerged of the four semi-desert islands, portraying a rich and unique flora and fauna with over a third of plants found nowhere else in the world, a diverse landscape of plateau, plain and mountain, all safeguarded by a people living sustainably in a challenging environment".